


Soldier

by devilindistress



Category: Apink, K-pop, SHINee
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Romantic Comedy, Awkward Romance, F/M, Romantic Comedy, Slow Romance, Teen Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-15
Updated: 2020-08-16
Packaged: 2021-03-01 00:28:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 23
Words: 55,332
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23156341
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/devilindistress/pseuds/devilindistress
Summary: Lee Taemin and Son Naeun were inseparable childhood friends, that is until Naeun moves away. Nine years later, the two are reunited. A lot has changed, especially with Taemin. Can they still be friends? Can they even be something more?
Relationships: Lee Taemin/Son Naeun
Kudos: 37





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hi everyone! This is my second SHINee fanfic. Unlike my first, this is going to have multiple chapters. This story will feature Taemin from SHINee and Naeun from Apink. I know that We Got Married was a problematic show, especially for them. Despite that, I still think that Taemin and Naeun made a cute couple. Call me crazy but I do think there was something there, even if it was just a tiny tiny TINY spark. Anyway, I present to you, Soldier.

“Mom! Mom! Mom! Can I go out now?” 

“Did you finish your vegetables, honey?”

A seven-year old boy with a bowl cut quickly devoured the pieces of corn and carrots on his plate. After drinking some water to wash it down, he asked again.

“Now can I? Can I?”

His mom chuckled and started to put their plates in the sink.

“Okay, Taemin. Don’t run, okay? You’ll get a stomach ache! Be home before dark!”

“Yes, Mom!”

With that, the little boy rushed out the front door, crossed the street, knocked on their neighbor’s door. A woman wearing a white dress and a yellow apron greeted him. 

“Oh, hi Taemin! Are you looking for Naeun?”

“Yes, Mrs. Son! Can we go and play?”

“Of course, dear. You can wait in the backyard. She’ll be right out.”

“Okay! Thank you, Mrs. Son!”

Naeun’s mother closed the door as she watched the boy run to their backyard.

“Naeun, Taemin’s here! He’s waiting for you at the back.”

“Already? But I’m not finished yet!”

The other seven-year old quickly looped a thin silver ribbon around two silver paper oblongs, forming a necklace. With a black marker, she wrote “Taemin” on one and “Naeun” on the other. After taking off her crafting apron, she smoothed out her pink dress, grabbed a plastic flower crown from the counter along with the necklace she just made and ran out the back door. 

“Hi Taemin!” She waved to the boy at the top of the slide. Naeun’s backyard was quite spacious but a big playground set took up most of the space. There was a slide, swings, and a sandbox. Though it was enough for a lot of kids to play in, Naeun was a shy little girl and didn’t have a lot of friends. Usually, it was just her and her neighbor, Taemin. 

“Naeun!” Taemin said as he went down the slide. “What took you so long?”

“I was making something for what we’re going to play today.”

“Why do you get to decide what to play today?”

“Because you did it last time, remember?”

Taemin thought back to the previous week when he brought over some water guns and played with them the whole afternoon. By the end of their play date, they were both soaked. Taemin just shrugged. “Fine.”

“Today, we’re going to play Protect the Princess,” Naeun said as she put on her flower crown. Her mom had bought it for her when they passed by a small toy section at the supermarket. It had brown vines as the main crown with green leaves and big plastic white roses all around it. As soon as Naeun saw it, she begged her mom to buy it for her. When she relented, Naeun was ecstatic and quickly wore it. When they were checking out, the cashier told her, “What a pretty girl you are! You look just like a princess!” That made her smile shyly and reply with a small “Thank you.” 

That was how Naeun came up with what they were going to play that day. While wearing the crown the night they bought it, she looked in the mirror. Aside from the cashier, both her parents told her that she looked very pretty while wearing it. She couldn’t forget the cashier’s words. “You look just like a princess!” kept replaying in her mind. She thought, “I wonder if Taemin will think I’m pretty too.” 

The little girl had developed a crush on her friend months ago. They’ve been neighbors since preschool and became fast friends. Taemin was the complete opposite of Naeun. He was outgoing, loud, and quite mean at times. Naeun was very shy, quiet, and a bit of a loner. However, when the two of them played, it was like they balanced each other out. Taemin became nicer while Naeun became more extroverted. One day, during recess in preschool, she saw him sitting by a tree. She approached him cautiously and noticed that he was eating ants. Feeling disgusted and sorry for the boy, she asked him, “Why are you eating ants?” Taemin jolted, surprised that she was there. 

“Oh, I don’t know,” he said. “I was bored, I guess.” 

Naeun hesitated. Not sure of what to do, she offered him some strawberry milk. “Do you want some strawberry milk? My mom packed me an extra one. You don’t have to eat ants anymore.”

Taemin stood up, accepted the carton from her, and smiled. “Thank you. My name is Lee Taemin. What’s your name?”

“Naeun. Son Naeun.” 

“Thank you for the milk, Naeun. Do you want to sit together during arts and crafts?”

Naeun smiled and nodded. They’ve been best friends ever since. However, a few months ago, Naeun noticed that she would feel a little pinch inside whenever she saw Taemin talking to other girls in their class. It relieved her though because no matter how caught up Taemin was in talking to their other classmates, he would always sit with her. Her feelings still confused her though. Why did she get mad? It wasn’t like Taemin was doing anything bad. 

One night during dinner, her mom noticed that Naeun was in a bad mood.

“Are you okay, sweetie?” she asked. “Did something happen at school?”

“No…” Naeun replied, rolling around the peas on her plate with her fork. 

“Then what’s wrong?”

“Nothing…”

“Are you sure?”

Naeun hesitated. “I think I’m mad at Taemin.”

“What?” Her mom had a concerned look on her face. “What did he do?”

“Nothing. He was just…. I don’t know.”

“Naeun, if it’s nothing, then why are you upset?”

“I just… I just don’t like it when he talks to other girls…”

“Why? Are those other girls mean to you?”

“No… But I still like being his friend. I like it that we always sit together.”

Her mom smiled knowingly. “Honey, I think you just have a crush on him.”

“A c-crush? What does that mean?”

“Hmm… It means you like him a bit more than other boys.”

“Is that bad?”

“No, honey. Not at all.”

“Do you think he’ll get mad at me if I tell him?”

“I’m not sure, but I don’t think it’s something you need to worry about right now.”

“Okay.”

Naeun finished her peas and ran up to her room. She decided not to tell Taemin that she had a crush on him. After all, she was already happy that they were friends. Months later, there they were with Naeun wanting to play “Protect the Princess.” 

“What’s that?” Taemin said.

“Well, I’m the Princess,” Naeun answered, pointing to her flower crown. “And you have to protect me.”

“Why?”

Naeun walked over to her friend and put the necklace she just made around his neck. “Because you’re my soldier and it’s a soldier’s job to protect the pretty princess. Don’t you think I look pretty?”

Taemin blushed and looked away. Naeun immediately blushed as well and wished she could take back her words. 

“Uhh.. Yeah, I guess?” Taemin said, still not meeting Naeun’s eyes. “But what’s this thing you put around my neck?”

“My daddy told me that’s what soldiers wear. It’s called a dog tag.”

Taemin held the pendants in his palm. He read their names on each one. “Umm, okay. But what do I protect you from?”

“Ummm…” Naeun hesitated. She realized she didn’t think this game through. She just wanted Taemin to see her wearing the flower crown. 

“Naeun, that doesn’t really sound fun. Can’t we play that next week?”

With that, Naeun’s expression suddenly changed. She walked over to the swing set and sat down on one of them. She frowned and tried to hold back her tears while she absentmindedly drew circles on the sand with her shoe. She had been putting off what she was about to say for days now.

Naeun’s dad was part of the army. Because of that, she and her family had to move every time her father was reassigned to a new base. Ever since they moved to this neighborhood, she and her mom were able to carry on even though her father was far away. Now, they’ve decided to move near Mr. Son’s new base because it was too far from where they lived now. A little over a week ago, Mr. Son and Mrs. Son finally broke the news to Naeun. She cried herself to sleep for days and tried to imagine that it wasn’t real. She thought that maybe if she ignored it enough, it wouldn’t come true. 

Taemin ran over and sat beside her. “Naeun, what’s wrong? Did I say something bad?”

This time, Naeun wasn’t trying to hide her tears anymore. “N-No, you didn’t. It’s just…. We can’t play that next week.”

“What? Why not?”

“Because… Because I’m moving, Taemin.”

Taemin’s heart sank and he frowned. “What do you mean you’re moving? You’re leaving?”

Naeun managed to nod between sobs.

“But why?”

“My daddy got reassigned and we have to leave next week. That’s why we can’t play.”

Taemin started to hold back his tears too and replaced them with anger. “You can’t leave me here! Naeun, if you leave, you’ll be a bad friend! You have to stay!” he said, stomping his feet on the ground.

Naeun just shook her head while sobbing, her dress now stained with tears. 

“Fine!” Taemin said. “If you’re going to leave anyway, then I don’t want to see you anymore!”

He ran back home and straight up to his room. Slamming the door, he crashed onto his bed and cried until he fell asleep. 

Taemin didn’t talk to Naeun at school all week. They would catch the other glancing at them from time to time but they still didn’t approach one another. Finally, the weekend came. A white moving truck was parked outside the Son’s house. He was watching Naeun’s dad carry boxes into the truck when his mom knocked on his door and peeped into his room. “Taemin, honey…” she said. “I’m going to say goodbye to the Sons. Do you want to come with me? You can say goodbye to Naeun.”

Taemin thought about it for a while. “No, mom. I don’t want to come.”

Mrs. Lee frowned but didn’t insist. “Okay. I’ll be there if you need me.”

Soon after, everything was packed and Naeun and her family were ready to leave. Taemin walked over to his front porch and watched from afar. He noticed that Naeun was still wearing her flower crown. Suddenly, she looked his way and their eyes met. She made a small wave and he did the same. Then, he watched as the pretty princess drove away. 

After they left, he walked back up to his room and sat on his bed. He realized that the dog tag that Naeun made for him was still on his nightstand. He realized he had lost a friend that day. He wasn’t sure if he’d ever see her again. Not wanting to be reminded of that, he took the necklace and shoved it deep into the drawer of his nightstand, where it would remain untouched for a long time.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's Note:  
> Hi everybody! Here's Chapter 2! Okay, let’s just pretend everybody here is of high school age (except for parents, etc). Also, I just made up names for their parents because I don’t know their actual names.

_9 years later_

“How many boxes are left, dear?” 

“Just a couple more, Mom!” a young lady in jeans and a red top answered.

A man in his late-forties approached the truck and tried to carry a box. “Naeun, let me help you with that.”

“Dad, I can handle it. You should lie down,” Naeun said. “The drive here must have been bad for your back.”

“Are you sure? I mean, your mom is already starting to organize things inside.”

“Yes, it’s fine. It’s just like three more anyway. I’ll holler if I need help.” With that, the man nodded with a smile and walked inside the house.

Before Naeun walked back to the truck, she found herself staring at the house across the street, at a particular window on the left. She squinted her eyes, trying to see if someone was inside. _What am I even expecting to see?_ she thought. She turned away and went back to work.

~*~

It was a Saturday and that meant that it was Taemin’s day-off. He would sleep until noon and play video games or hang out with his friends until midnight. Homework could wait until Sunday. 

This was his routine ever since he entered high school. His parents never approved of it but eventually relented because Taemin was a particularly stubborn young man. He had grown rebellious over the years, as most teenagers do. His grades were dropping. He would cut class. He was a known heartbreaker at school. However, on this fateful day, all of that was about to change. 

“Taemin!” Mrs. Lee knocked on his door.

Rolling his eyes, Taemin paused his game and answered, “What?”

“May I come in?”

“Yes, but please make it quick, Mom. I’m in the middle of a game.”

His mom stepped in, sighing at the sight of her son’s messy room. His bed was unmade. His dirty clothes were all over the floor. His books and his backpack were carelessly set aside on his desk. Even her son was unkempt with his bed hair, loose shirt, and boxers. 

“What is it, Mom?” Taemin said impatiently.

“I think you should get dressed and come with me to greet our…. new neighbors.”

“What? Why would I want to do that?”

“Just trust me, son. Be ready in ten minutes. I’ll wait for you downstairs.”

Taemin’s mom left his room, leaving him bewildered. Over the years, they had many neighbors move in and move out. His mom always greeted and welcomed them, but not once did she ask him to come along. He stood up and looked out his window and saw the moving truck at the house across the street. He watched as a girl about his age carried boxes into the house. _What’s so special about these new neighbors?_ he thought.

“Unless….” He took a closer look at the girl’s face. “No freakin’ way…”

~*~

Taemin hurriedly put on his jeans and a graphic shirt and almost fell over trying to wear his Vans sneakers. After brushing his teeth and splashing some water on his face, he met his mom downstairs and followed her out the door. 

“Here, Taem. Please carry the plate.” His mom said, smoothing out her white dress. Whenever new neighbors moved in, she would always make a fresh batch of cookies to give them. 

With each step, Taemin’s heart started to beat a little faster. _What’s the matter with me?_ he thought. _It’s just a new neighbor. No big deal. Unless…. Nah, it can’t be._

____

____

**Thud. Thud.**

They were reaching the front yard now.

 **Thud. Thud. Thud. Thud.**

At that moment, a woman in a soft yellow button-down and cropped khakis stepped out. “Sweetie, is that the last bo- Oh my word! Lee Haemi, is that you?”

“Son Minsoo! How have you been?”

And just like that, the two older women were chatting away. Taemin just stood awkwardly a few steps behind his mom. He was shuffling his shoes on the ground when Minsoo suddenly called his attention.

“Taemin! Oh, look at you! You’re all grown up! Oh, Haemi, what a handsome son you’ve got here.”

They were interrupted by a female voice coming from the moving truck. 

“Yes, mom. This is the last-”

At that moment, Taemin’s and Naeun’s eyes met and suddenly everything else was a blur. His resounding heartbeat on the way was now a deafening silence. It felt like the world had stopped until Mrs. Son’s voice pulled him back into reality.

“Naeun, you remember Mrs. Lee’s son, Taemin.”

Naeun seemed just as shocked as he was. “Y-Yes.” She gave him a small smile. “How could I forget?”

Taemin was still speechless. He couldn’t take his eyes off his childhood friend. 

Sensing the awkwardness, Minsoo broke the silence again. “Haemi, why don’t you come in for some tea? We have a lot to catch up on!” Taemin’s mother gave a knowing smile and followed her neighbor inside. “Taemin, I’ll just be inside. Call if you need me!”

“Y-Yeah. Sure, Mom.” 

The two teenagers were left alone. Still carrying the last box, Naeun took a deep breath and walked over to the boy. 

“Hey, Taemin…” she said, unable to look him in the eye.

“Hi, Naeun.” he replied, still holding the plate of cookies. “Umm.. do you want help with that? I’ll trade you for these cookies.”

“Sure.” Naeun handed him the small box and received the plate of cookies. They walked to a bench on Naeun’s front porch and sat down. 

“So….” Taemin said, fiddling with his fingers, like he always did when he was nervous. “How’ve you been?”

Naeun peeled back the cling wrap and took a bite of a cookie. “I’ve been alright… Moved here and there for a couple of years… What about you?” She offered him a cookie to lessen the tension.

Taemin got one and replied. “Nothing much, really. Nothing has really changed… Well, except me.”

“I can see that. I mean, look at you. You’re so tall now and…” Naeun stopped talking when she realized she was about to say he was handsome.

“Yeah, well…” Taemin sneakily looked at her up and down, making sure Naeun didn’t notice. “You’ve… grown up too.” She was pretty, Taemin thought. Back when they were kids, he already thought of her that way, but this was different. She was beautiful in a way a young lady would be - graceful and sweet with a nice smile. But Taemin wasn’t about to say that now.

“So you’ve moved a lot, huh?” Taemin continued. “What about school and stuff?”

“I guess that’s the sad part. I never really had lasting friendships. The longest one I had was… with you, I suppose, back when we were still like, seven years old. I’m here for good now though. My dad got discharged because of his health.”

“Oh that’s great!” Naeun gave him a confused look and Taemin realized what he just said. “No! I mean, it’s great that you’re here for good now. Did you purposely move back to your old house though?”

“No, actually. My parents were looking for houses for sale and it just so happened that this was on the market.”

“Wow…. what are the chances, huh?”

Naeun let out a chuckle. “Yup. Some may even say it’s destiny.”

Taemin raised his eyebrow at her. “Do you really believe in that?”

“Sometimes. I mean, think about it. Of all the houses in this neighborhood, the one available was our old house right in front of yours. Also, by some chance, you could have moved all these years but you didn’t. Then nine years later, here we are, talking just like we used to.”

Taemin smiled as he watched her talk. He found himself surprisingly comfortable within her presence, as if she never left.

“I guess you have a point,” he said. “But I’m still not entirely sold on the whole destiny thing.”

Naeun shrugged. “It’s okay. Not many people are. I just think it’s beautiful and poetic in a way…”

This time, Taemin full-on faced her and held her hand. “I guess you’ll have to convince me then,” he said, putting on his most charming smile. 

Normally, other girls would blush and stutter over his smile, but not Son Naeun. She countered with her own smile and placed her hand over his. Taemin felt the warmth from Naeun’s hand and started to feel his face heating up as well. He quickly changed the topic and put the last cardboard box on his lap.

“Uhhh… So what’s in here?” Taemin said, keeping his eyes glued to the box.

Naeun removed her hand from his and started to open the flaps. “I’m not sure, actually.” 

When they opened the box, lo and behold, what sat on top was a flower crown. It was a bit disheveled and dusty but they both recognized it right away for what it was.

Naeun smiled as she grazed her hand over the plastic flowers. “Still don’t believe in destiny?”

Before Taemin could reply, his mother broke their conversation.

“Taemin? I’m sorry to interrupt you two but it’s almost dinnertime and I haven’t prepared any food. Come help me.” 

Taemin sighed and answered, his gaze never leaving Naeun. “Sure, Mom.”

With that, Mrs. Lee started to walk away from the porch. “Good bye, Minsoo! Let’s talk more some other time! Good bye, Naeun!” 

Taemin stood up and took one last look at his childhood friend. “I guess I’ll see you around, Princess?”

Naeun stood up as well and dusted off the crumbs on her jeans. She met Taemin’s smile with her own. 

“Yes. You definitely will.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dun dun dun dun dun dun Naeun's back...  
> Dun dun dun dun dun dun Naeun's back...  
> Dun dun dun dun dun dun Naeun's back...  
> Dun dun dun dun dun dun NAEUN'S BACK! BACK! BACK! BACK! GO!
> 
> So yeah, from what I've written so far, it seems like the story won't be fast-paced, but I'm making sure that they're easy to read so you guys won't get bored.
> 
> Anyway, I'd love to know what you think! Feel free to comment below!
> 
> Thank you and see you next week!


	3. Chapter 3

“Umm, Taemin? That minced garlic isn’t going to get any smaller,” Lee Haemi said, giving her son a knowing smile.

Taemin had been helping his mom with dinner by chopping the vegetables. He had been mincing the garlic for about ten minutes now until his mom noticed. 

“Oh! Uh, okay… My bad. Here.” He handed his mom the chopping board with the extra-tiny pieces of garlic.

“Something on your mind?” 

“Not really…”

“Are you sure? Maybe it has something to do with the Sons moving back here again?” Taemin sighed. _Moms always know..._

“N-No. It’s not that.” Taemin said, grabbing a carrot from the counter. He proceeded to slice it into thin circles. 

“If you say so. Aren’t you happy that Naeun is back? I mean, she was your childhood friend after all.”

“Umm… I suppose, but we haven’t talked in forever. A lot of things have changed.”

“Well, that’s true…”

Taemin stopped chopping and stared into space for a minute. _A lot of things have really changed. The Naeun I talked to earlier was like a different person… but the same one at the same time… Well, what did I expect? No one stays the same for nine years… I know I didn’t._

“Taemin, why don’t you let me handle that? I’ll call you when it’s time for dinner,” Haemi said, patting her son’s back.

“Okay,” Taemin sighed. “Thanks, Mom.”

With that, Taemin ran upstairs to his room. He needed someone to talk to about this and he knew just the right people to call. When he entered his room, he quickly kicked off his shoes and booted up his computer. As he waited for the machine to completely start up, he couldn’t stop playing with his fingers - a habit he did when he was fidgeting. Finally, when he saw his desktop wallpaper appear, he opened Skype and logged in. Thankfully, all four of his best friends were online. He automatically clicked on the video call button. After a minute or two, four boys appeared on the four video screens on his computer. 

These four boys were his best friends - Onew, Jonghyun, Key, and Minho. When Naeun left, Taemin became more distant with his preschool classmates. It was only until the second grade when he met the four of them that he opened up again. They have been inseparable ever since. Even though they had such different personalities, the five of them were thick as thieves. 

Jinki - or Onew, as his friends called him, was the model student. He was the top student of their grade and was voted almost unanimously as the student body president. Despite being all smiles and sunshine on the outside, he took his responsibilities very seriously. 

Jonghyun was the musician. When he wasn’t in class, he would often be found in the music room, playing the piano or the guitar. He composed songs and brought his music journal all the time so that he could write down his ideas before he could forget them. 

Key, who refused to answer to Kibum - his real name, was the school’s resident fashionista. The five were well-off but not as much as Key. He was very rich because his mom was a model-turned-socialite. As such, she would attend exclusive events and go abroad most of the time. Every time she went home, she would bring her son expensive designer pieces - hence, Key’s affinity for fashion. 

Lastly, Minho was the jock. Though most jocks in the school were obnoxious jerks, Minho was different. If anything, he was the school’s Mr. Congeniality. Aside from his friends and family, the most important thing in his life right now was soccer. He gave his all during every game, hoping to impress a scout so he could get a scholarship for college. 

Taemin was their youngest, even though the five were only months apart. Every teenager had their rebellious years but Taemin’s was the most apparent. He earned a reputation of being a heartthrob and a playboy in school - never having girlfriends but just dating around. This week’s girl was named Eunsook. Taemin was in the library, trying to find a secluded place to sleep when he saw her studying. Taemin did his usual moves and predictably, Eunsook agreed to date him (probably hoping it would last more than a week). With Naeun’s arrival though, things were about to change. 

“Hey guys,” Taemin said. “Something weird just happened.”

The four were preoccupied with their own activities so they were multitasking while on the video call. 

“Onew, are you seriously doing homework right now?” Jonghyun asked. “You’re such a nerd. Pay attention!”

“Pfft... Says the guy who’s playing the guitar during a video call.” Onew replied, not even looking up from the paper he was writing on. “And it’s not homework. I’m approving and double-checking the preparations for the school fair. It’s only a month away and as the student body president, I have a lot of work to do.”

“Can’t you just delegate that?” Key said, rummaging through his huge closet. His video call was obviously set at the loudest volume because he was on the other side of his enormous room. “God, I don’t have anything to wear for tomorrow.” He shook his head and scoured through the closet some more.

“No, I can’t. If something goes wrong, it’s my head on the chopping block so I have to make sure everything is done properly.” Onew replied.

“You really need to learn how to take a break.” Minho said, practicing bouncing a soccer ball on his knees. He accidentally hit it too hard and sent the soccer ball bouncing off the ceiling. “MINHO-YAH! DIDN’T I TELL YOU NO SOCCER INSIDE THE HOUSE?” shouted his mother from downstairs. “Sorry, Mom!” he replied, still bouncing the ball some more.

“GUYS! Can you listen, please?”

“Sorry,” said Jonghyun.”What’s the weird thing that happened today?”

“Naeun’s back.”

“What?” Minho said, catching the soccer ball and sitting in front of his computer. “For real?”

“Yes! She even moved back to her old house, as in the one in front of mine!”

Key stopped searching through his closet for a moment and scrunched up his eyebrows. “I’m sorry. Please refresh my memory. Who is Naeun again?”

Onew replied, still not even looking up from the papers, “Naeun’s his childhood friend. You know, the one who moved away when they were in preschool.” 

“Ohhh!” Jonghyun said. “You mean the one he’s been in love with since forever?”

“What!?” Taemin was bewildered. “I am NOT in love with Naeun. She was just my friend.”

“So if it’s not a big deal, why did you say it was weird? Plus why was it urgent enough to start a video call with the four of us?” Jonghyun replied. “Not that I don’t like talking to you guys.”

“I…. I don’t know. Maybe it’s because of ALL the houses in this neighborhood, she happened to move back into her old house? Back to being my neighbor?”

“Well, maybe it was just a coincidence,” Onew said, finally focusing on the video chat, resting his chin on his hand. 

“I think it’s too much of a coincidence, actually.” Minho added. “Do you think she planned it?”

Taemin paused for a second to think about it. “No, I don’t think so.”

“Then maybe it’s destiny that you found each other again…” Jonghyun sang while strumming his guitar. “Oh, that’s a good line. I better write that down.”

“Ughhh… Seriously, what is up with this destiny thing? First, Naeun said it. Then you-”

“WAIT!” Key interjected, sitting in front of his computer. “You talked to her already?”

“Well, yeah. My mom kinda made me go with her to welcome them back. She probably thought I would be happy to see her again.”

“Aren’t you?” replied Onew.

“I suppose? I mean, we shared cookies and we were talking like she wasn’t gone for years.”

Key rolled his eyes. “Let me guess. You flirted with her, didn’t you?”

“Not really. Well, kind of.” Taemin admitted, scratching the back of his head. “But it didn’t work. She didn’t respond like the other girls did. I smiled and put my hand over hers but she just smiled back and put her hand over mine. It was like she was challenging me or something.”

“Woooow…” Minho said with curiosity. “I like her already.”

“Hey, she’s already off-limits, Minho.” said Jonghyun. “She’s Taemin’s.”

“She’s not! She’s just a friend!.” Taemin insisted.

“Okay! Okay! Fine! She’s just a friend.” Key relented. “We get it.”

“Is she going to our school?” Onew asked.

“Oh, damn. I forgot to ask her. Well, if she isn’t, then there’s no problem.”

Onew went back to reviewing his papers. “But what if she is?” 

“Then that’s a problem.” Taemin said.

“Why? Are you afraid she’s going to see your _bad boy phase?_ ” Key teased and laughed.

“It’s not a phase! I like being like this… I’ve changed a lot since she last saw me. I’m not that little kid anymore...” _And I don’t know if she'll like it… If she’ll like me..._

Minho shook his head and frowned a bit, not letting Taemin see. “If you say so, Taem… Anyway, I think you’re worrying about this too much. Just wait ‘til Monday and then figure things out from there.”

“He’s right.” Onew added. “There’s no point in stressing about something you’re not even sure about.”

Taemin sighed. He lay his head back, faced the ceiling, and closed his eyes. “Yeah, you guys are right. I just have to keep calm and wait.” 

“Taemin! Dinner’s ready!” Mrs. Lee called from downstairs, interrupting their conversation.

“Oh, I gotta go. It’s dinner time. Thanks for hearing me out, guys.” Taemin smiled. Despite his rebellious image, he treasured his friends and was never afraid to show them his real self - not the one he had to put on for everybody else.

“We gotchu, bro.” Jonghyun said with a chuckle. “Bye!”

The other three said their goodbyes too then Taemin ended the video call on his side. Little did he know that the other four continued talking after he left. Obviously, they were worried. He may be only months younger, but he was still their baby brother. 

“Do you really think she’s going to our school?” Jonghyun asked.

“It’s a big possibility,” Onew replied. “I mean it’s the closest school in the neighborhood.”

“So what do we do?” Minho said. “What if she sees Taemin being…. well, Taemin?”

Key smirked and let out a small laugh. “Then grab your popcorn, kids. We’re in for an _interesting_ turn of events.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So that was Chapter 3!
> 
> I had a lot of fun writing this because the rest of SHINee is finally involved! It was really exciting to create their personalities (based on what we know in real life) and their group dynamic. You're going to be seeing a lot more of them in the future.
> 
> I hope you liked the chapter! 
> 
> Feel free to comment below! Thank you for reading!


	4. Chapter 4

This was it. Today was Son Naeun’s first day at her new (and hopefully last) high school. Having moved around so much during the past nine years made her anxious. It wasn’t just because she was naturally shy. Back when her father was still active in the military, she avoided making a lot of friends, especially close ones, because she knew she wouldn’t be there for long. She didn’t want to have to say hurtful goodbyes every time. But now that she had an idea of permanence, she didn’t know what to do with it.

After taking one last look in the mirror, she grabbed her backpack and went downstairs. 

“Hey, mom,” she said, taking a seat at the counter. 

“Good morning!” Son Minsoo greeted her daughter with a kiss on the cheek and placed a plate with scrambled eggs, bacon, and toast in front of her. “Eat up! Today’s a big day!”

Naeun tried to hide her nervousness by nibbling on a piece of toast. “Yup… It is…”

Mrs. Son gave her daughter a curious look. “Something wrong?” 

Naeun sighed. _Mothers always know._ “Umm… “ She tried to find something else to say. “Uhhh, is my outfit okay?” She stood up and did a little twirl. “Is it too much?” Her casual floral dress billowed around her as she spinned. With it, she matched a pink cardigan and pink ballet flats. 

“No, I think you look very cute.” 

“Thank you…” She went back to eating her breakfast.

“What are you worried about?”

“...I’m not worried about anything.”

“Son Naeun, I grew you in my belly. I fed you from my breast. I potty-trained-”

“MOM! Stop!” The girl buried her face in her hands. How is it possible to feel embarrassed even if it was only her and her mom in the room?

“Okay, okay.” Mrs. Son chuckled. “My point is, I know when something’s wrong. You can tell me…”

“... I just… I’m worried about making friends. I feel like… I don’t know how to do that anymore.”

“Because we’ve moved around a lot?”

“Yes! Plus, you know how shy I am…”

Mrs. Son sighed and put a comforting hand on her daughter’s shoulder. “Honey, I know this is going to sound so corny and cliche but just be yourself. Friends will come when they come. Besides, you already have one there!”

“Huh?” Naeun paused, a spoon full of yellow egg fluffs halfway between her and her plate.

“Oh, didn’t I tell you? Lee Taemin goes there too.”

“What!? Are you serious?” 

“Yes? What’s wrong? Aren’t you relieved that you already have someone you know? Someone who’s already a friend?”

 _I’m not so sure that’s what we are_ , Naeun thought. 

After catching up with her childhood friend last Saturday, she couldn’t stop thinking about it - about him. When they were talking, she was completely calm and comfortable, despite the fact that it was their first time seeing each other again after nine years. It felt like she never left at all, or at least that was what it was like for her. That night, she tossed and turned as she tried to get some sleep - or at least get him off her mind. 

_UGH! Get a grip, girl! What’s wrong with you? It’s just Taemin. You just talked. No big deal. But I put my hand over his. GREAT! Now he probably thinks I was flirting. But that wasn’t flirting, right? Well, he’s probably used to it. I mean, come on, he’s become really handsome. Wait, where did that come from? Okay, I have to stop._

After five minutes of staring at her ceiling, Naeun grabbed her phone from her nightstand and opened Facebook. She was hoping to get some intel on the boy but alas, his profile was set to private. _Should I add him? Or is that too...desperate?_ Her finger hovered over the “Add friend” button for a while before she decided to put her phone aside and force herself to sleep. _This is nothing. I’m sure it’ll be gone in the morning._

Monday came and it still wasn’t gone. Now that she knew that Taemin would be attending the same school, the nervous pit in her stomach grew bigger. Nevertheless, she finished her breakfast, brushed her teeth, and went to the car. Since it was her first day, her mom was going to accompany her to the principal’s office before classes started. _Here we go…._

~*~

Kang Hodong’s office was just like an ordinary principal’s room. There was a wooden desk with two matching chairs in front of it. There were file cabinets and a printer on the side. At one corner stood a lonely-looking plant in its brown pot. The most decorative part of the room was the wall behind his table. On it hung school banners and what looks like photos of him during his days as a student. From what she could see, Principal Kang used to be on the school’s wrestling team. She wasn’t surprised, considering the man’s physique.

He was a man in his mid-40’s who always wore brown slacks and a brown jacket with a patterned button-down shirt underneath. Today’s pattern was blue plaid. Despite his large, intimidating build, he was always smiling wide, making his eyes turn into narrow slits. He was a kind man who was always trying to keep in touch with today’s youth. Hence, he asked the students to call him Principal Hodong instead of his last name. He had also just learned what the slang word, “flex” meant and it was all over his social media. He also looked extra jolly today, as he always did when the school had esteemed guests or new students.

Naeun barely spoke as this man and her mom talked about Naeun’s history of moving around and changing schools for the past nine years. She nodded politely and smiled whenever needed but that was about it. She watched as the principal looked over her transcripts. She wasn’t nervous about it though. Sure, she wasn’t the best student, but she wasn’t the worst either. 

“Well,” the man addressed Naeun. “Ms. Son. I know you’ve transferred from school to school but I’m sure you’ll fit in just fine here. Would you like a tour before classes start?”

Naeun looked at her mom for the answer. Mrs. Son knew that her daughter would be nervous so she put on a smile and a comforting hand on Naeun’s. “You should go, honey. Besides, I have to go back home now and check on your dad. It’ll be fine.”

Naeun forced a smile back at her mother and nodded at Principal Kang. “That would be great, Principal Kang.”

“Please, call me Principal Hodong.” The man stood up, opened the door for the two ladies and left with them. 

As they left the administrative section, they started their tour at the main entrance of the school. It was there that Naeun was left with the man. Luckily, there was still the hustle and bustle of students around them entering the school and arriving at their lockers so they didn’t draw too much attention to themselves. 

“Well, here we are. Obviously, this is the main entrance of the school. First, I want to flex our main bulletin board.” He gestured at the big wooden rectangle in front of them. One part was filled with a tier of students’ photos while the rest was covered in brightly-colored flyers. “As you can see, we have a lot of extracurricular activities you can participate in. There are different sports teams. _I have no athletic abilities at all,_ thought Naeun. _So that’s definitely out._ There’s also the cheerleading squad. _Nope._ We also have the literature club, the science club, the drama club, and well… you get my point. Of course, the students’ academics are our top priority but all work and no play makes one a dull girl, eh?” Hodong chuckled and Naeun gave out a polite laugh. “I’m sure it’ll help you make new friends too.” 

Hodong walked over to the other side of the board. “Here we have our student council, along with team captains and club presidents. Don’t be shy. You can talk to them anytime you want if you’re interested in participating in their activities. As for our student council, you can see here that Lee Jinki is our student body president. He’s a bright boy, hardworking and kind too.” Naeun looked at the boy’s photo. Lee Jinki had a bright smile that definitely left a friendly impression on anyone who looked at him. 

The principal pondered for a while. “Come to think of it, maybe _he_ should be the one giving you a tour. After all, I think it’s better if you see the school from a fellow student’s perspective. Hold on, I’ll call him to the office.”

Naeun was supposed to interject to tell him that she would be fine without the tour. She wasn’t ready for a lot of social interaction. To be honest, she just wanted to find her locker and rush to her first class. 

“Sir, it’s really okay if-”

“Oh, look! There he is!” Principal Hodong said, spotting the boy among the crowd, surrounded by his friends. “This is perfect! Come, Naeun. I’ll introduce you.”

Naeun was trying to control her anxiety when she spotted a familiar face near Lee Jinki. _Wait, is that Taemin?_

~*~

“Is she here yet? Is she here yet? What did I miss?” Minho stood, panting after jogging from his locker to his friends’. Since the others’ last names were closer together on the alphabet, they were assigned lockers near each other too. Choi Minho was the unfortunate one, with his locker at the other end of the hallway. 

“You didn’t miss anything,” Taemin said, getting his books for his first class. “Guys, this isn’t a big deal. Why are you even here waiting for me?”

“Who says we were waiting for you?” Jonghyun snickered. “We’re waiting for Naeun.”

“Why?”

Key rolled his eyes. “Duh. She’s your friend and as your best friends, we’re obligated to meet her.”

“Yes, but like this? It’s like I’m throwing her a welcoming parade. It’ll be weird.”

“No, it won’t.” Onew said, going through papers on his clipboard. “We can introduce ourselves just fine, thank you very much.”

“Guys, please. We don’t even know if she’s going to our school.” Taemin said, exasperated. He couldn’t keep Naeun off his mind ever since he talked to her. He could barely do his homework and get some sleep, which added to his grumpy mood that Monday. 

“I mean, what do you expect, guys?” he continued, pointing to the school’s entrance. “Do you think she’ll just suddenly waltz by and greet us with sunshine and daisies and rainbows?”

Then at that very moment, Principal Kang Hodong walked where he was pointing, talking with the one and only, Son Naeun. Taemin froze and turned his back. 

“Holy shit, that’s her!” Taemin whispered. The other four looked at him in confusion.

“What?” Minho said, the four of them leaning closer to Taemin. 

“I said, that’s HER! The girl who’s talking to Principal Kang. THAT’S NAEUN!”

The four boys leaned to the side and examined the girl.

“Oh my god, guys! Not all at once! They’ll see us and she’ll think we’re creepy!” Taemin said, panic-whispering. Jonghyun, Key, and Minho retracted back to their original positions.

“She’s cute,” Jonghyun said. “Long hair, pretty smile.”

“Simple floral dress with a pink cardigan.” Key shrugged. “Not bad for a first day of school outfit.”

Minho nodded. “I agree with both of them. Is she your type though?”

Taemin was flustered again. “What? First of all, I DO NOT have a type and second-What the hell!? Onew, are you still looking!?”

He pulled his friend to his normal stance. “What were you doing, looking at her for so long?”

“I’m sorry! I don’t have my contacts on yet! You all know I’m blind as a bat without them!” Onew answered. 

“Okay, at least they didn’t notice you.”

“....Actually they did.” Onew said. “Before you pulled me up, Principal Kang saw me and is now heading in our direction. We have 7 seconds tops.”

Taemin exhaled. “Okay, everyone be cool. Don’t panic. You can do this.”

“Are you telling us or yourself?” Jonghyun smirked. 

“Shut uuuuuuppp…” Taemin angrily whispered.

Key hid his smile and whisper-counted. “5...4...3..2..1...touchdown…”

“Good morning, students!” the jolly man greeted. 

“Good morning, Principal Hodong," the five boys answered simultaneously. 

“I want you to meet a new student here. Her name is Son Naeun. She’s in your grade.”

“Hi…” Naeun replied, with a small wave. “I actually already met one of them. Lee Taemin is my neighbor.” She gave him a small smile.

“Oh…” Hodong looked at Taemin with an almost-unnoticeable frown. “Well, I’m glad you already know someone.” Taemin almost rolled his eyes. He knew he wasn’t exactly Hodong’s cup of tea.

His gaze went past Taemin and focused on Onew. “Jinki, why don’t you show Naeun around? After all, you're the student body president!” Before Onew could answer, the principal started to walk away. “Work hard today, okay kids? Fighting!” He raised his fist in the air before disappearing down the hallway. 

Despite the hustle and bustle around them, there was silence among the five guys and the girl. 

“So….” Naeun said, turning to Taemin. “Are you going to introduce me to your friends?” For some reason, Taemin couldn’t bring words out of his mouth. His cheeks were also turning a bright shade of pink.

“Hi, I’m Lee Jinki,” Onew interjected, shaking her hand. “But everybody calls me Onew.” _He’s handsome,_ Naeun thought. _In kind of a cute nerdy way...._

“Kim Jonghyun” _Also cute, kind of looks like a dinosaur…_

“Kim Kibum, but you can call me Key” _Wow, his skin is like porcelain. I wonder what his skincare routine is..._

“Choi Minho” _Very handsome, nice body… His face is kind of small but still…_

“It’s nice to meet all of you,” Naeun said, more relaxed than before. Was it because Taemin was there?. “Have you known Taemin for a long time?”

“Yes, since the second grade actually,” replied Minho with a smile. 

The girl turned her attention to the blushing boy. “Taemin, you didn’t mention them last time we talked. I’m glad I was able to meet you guys today.”

“We’re glad to meet you too,” said Jjong. “Taemin has been talking about you-” Key quickly covered Jonghyun’s mouth with his hand. “YA!” Key reprimanded him. “Okay, time-out for you, Jjong. Bye guys!”

“Sorry,” Minho said, trying to hold back a laugh. “Jonghyun babbles a lot. We’ll leave you guys alone now. It was nice meeting you, Naeun!” Waving goodbye, Minho followed Key, who was practically dragging Jonghyun away. 

After the three left, Naeun didn’t know what was louder - the deafening silence or her heart, still pounding in her chest. 

“So...you’re supposed to give me a tour?” Naeun asked Onew, mustering up her courage. She wasn’t used to being alone with other boys she barely knew. The exception was Taemin, but that probably didn’t count because they were childhood friends.

Taemin gave Onew a look - an embarrassed “don’t leave me here” but at the same time, a “go away” expression. Despite Taemin’s contradicting signals, Onew kept calm. He smirked while looking at the younger boy. 

“Actually, Naeun…” Onew said, giving Naeun his signature smile. “I’m so sorry but I’m very busy today with the preparations for the school fair. Maybe...Taemin can show you around?”

Her heartbeat returned to normal and she was able to sigh in relief. Still, she couldn’t understand her contradicting feelings towards the boy. Did she feel better because she wouldn't be around a stranger or because she would be with _Taemin_? Naeun shrugged and turned to him. “Would that be okay with you, Taemin?” 

“Umm… yeah, sure.” Taemin said, nervously putting what he believed to be a confident expression. “It would be my pleasure.”

With that, Onew turned away. “Have fun, you two!” he said before leaving them alone. As he was walking down the hall, he whispered to himself, “Best. Wingman. Ever.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone! I hope you enjoyed this chapter!
> 
> I would just like all of you to know that aside from their parents, I'll be using real Korean celebrities as side characters. or example, this chapter, I made Kang Hodong the principal. It's so that you guys can visualize them better, but by no means does this fanfic reflect how they act in real life.
> 
> That's about it! See you next week!


	5. Chapter 5

After Onew left, Taemin and Naeun were on their own. Subtly taking a deep breath, Taemin shrugged his nervousness off and shut his locker. 

“So,” he said, beaming at Naeun. “Are you ready for the tour?”

“Are you sure it’s okay for us to skip the first period?”

“Yeah, it’s no problem. It’s homeroom anyway. So, are you ready?”

“As ready as I’ll ever be, I guess.” she replied, nodding and returning his smile with her own. “But, I mean, is a tour really necessary? Isn’t this school just like other schools?”

“Well, yes…” Taemin thought. “...But I think I can show you some parts that are a bit unique.”

“Okay then. Surprise me.”

Taemin considered holding her hand, but immediately brushed the thought away. He didn’t want her - or anybody else for that matter, getting the wrong idea.

They walked together down the hallway and he led her to the right side at the end. “Over here are the lockers, obviously, and if you go left, you’ll see the ordinary classrooms.”

“Ordinary? So what about this side?”

“Come, I’ll show you.”

As they walked, Taemin would skip some doors but show her inside some.

“I’m showing you the rooms where my friends and I usually hang out.” He opened the door and inside were art materials of all kinds. There were easels and shelves of paint. There were potter’s wheels. There were even sewing machines and bolts of fabric at the very back. “Whoa…” Naeun said, looking around the room, grazing her fingers over the easels and tables. “I’ve never seen an arts and crafts room this….diverse…”

Taemin stayed by the door, leaning on the frame. “Yeah, well the school encourages extracurriculars a lot. That’s why this whole hallway is full of special rooms.”

“Do you go here a lot then?”

“Tch… No. Arts and crafts isn’t really my thing. Key is here almost 24/7 though. He likes to draw and make clothes and stuff like that.”

“That’s really cool.” Naeun examined a half-finished sculpture carefully, making sure not to bump into anything else. 

“What about you?” asked Taemin. “Are you an artistic person?”

Naeun walked back to the doorway. “I can draw a bit. I’m not sure, really. Moving a lot didn’t really help me “discover” my talent,” she replied with air quotes.

“Ahhh… well, you never know. Maybe you’ll find it here. Do you want to move to the next room?”

“Sure.”

Taemin opened the next door and inside, Naeun saw various instruments - almost like a mini orchestra. There was even a grand piano in the corner and what looked like a recording station across it. “Wow!” she exclaimed, pointing at the station. “That looks expensive.”

“Yeah, it is. Not a lot of students are allowed to use it though. If given permission, you need to have a teacher with you. Though I do know someone who sneaks in...”

“Yeah? Who?”

Taemin smirked and held out his pinky. “Promise you won’t tell?”

Naeun linked her pinky with his. “Promise.” 

“It’s Jjong. He practically lives here. To be honest, I think the teachers know he uses the station but just lets him be because he’s really good.”

“Wow… I’d love to hear him play or sing some time.” 

“....Do you want me to arrange a date then?” The boy smirked, almost challenging Naeun. 

“No.... At least not yet…” Naeun exited the room and walked past him back to the hallway. “

 _Did she just...brush me off?_ Taemin thought. His heart started beating fast again. He had to press his chest and take a deep breath to keep it down. 

Naeun turned and looked back at him. “You okay?”

Taemin came to his senses and put on a smile again. “Yeah! Yeah, I’m fine. Shall we move on?”

“Sure!”

“Okay, I want to show you the library.” He said, leading her to the left. 

“The library? But, don’t all schools have libraries?”

“Yes, but I want to show you a special spot.”

At the end of the hallway stood double doors. Taemin pushed them open and rushed to the stairs leading to the mezzanine, urging Naeun to follow. The librarian shot them a dirty look for making a bit of noise but since there were barely any people around, she let it pass. Taemin and Naeun passed through shelf after shelf until they reached the corner. It was carpeted just like the rest of the library but with a turquoise shag rug instead of the generic dark blue floor. Soft bean bags lay on it with different-sized moon-like spheres that acted as lamps scattered about the area. 

“Whoa…” Naeun approached the space. “Well, this sure is…. different.” She gave one of the spheres a light touch, and it lit up, giving off a warm white hue. “Why isn’t the rest of the library like this?” 

Taemin sat and sank into one of the beanbags. “Technically, this space is still… experimental in terms of productivity. The teachers are still trying to see if the students can study well in spaces like these versus the regular library set-ups.”

“So you guys hang out here often? I would imagine other students would go out of their way to call dibs on this place first.”

“Well, that’s where Onew comes in.”

“Huh?”

Taemin pointed to a glass-walled room at the opposite corner. There, Naeun saw him sitting at a round table with other students. It looked like they were having a meeting. Taemin waved in that direction and caught Onew’s attention. He stood up from his seat and saw Taemin and Naeun. After giving them a smile and a thumbs up, he went back to business. 

“Being friends with the student body president has its perks. Usually, when Onew and the council are working late, the rest of us just hang out here and relax.” Taemin patted the bean bag next to him, motioning for Naeun to sit there. It was softer than she anticipated and she fell in.

“Oh!” she squealed as she tried to regain her balance. Taemin burst out laughing. When Naeun was able to sit properly, she lightly smacked Taemin’s arm while giggling. “You could have warned me!”

“Well, I didn’t think anyone would be _eaten by a bean bag!_ ”

The two kept on laughing until they heard a knock. It was Onew, knocking on the glass wall of the council room. When he caught their attention, he put his finger against his lips in a “sshh” motion. Naeun covered her face and looked away in embarrassment while Taemin just hid his laugh with one hand and answered Onew with the “ok” sign with the other. 

After composing herself, Naeun peeked at Onew again, pouting a bit. He looked so different from his smiling photo on the bulletin board. “He seems like a really hardworking guy. Does he ever take a break?”

Taemin sat up. “Yeah, he does. He’s just really busy nowadays because of the upcoming school fair.”

“The school fair?”

“Yeah. Come, let’s continue with the tour. I’ll show you where we usually hold the school fairs.”

They made their way out of the library and went outside through the back entrance. There lay a sprawling green field with large trees scattered here and there. Around the trunks of said trees were wooden benches. 

Spreading his arms wide in front of him, Taemin said, “This is the school yard. People usually just come out here to hang out during lunch or whatever. Sometimes, they even lay out blankets and have picnics or sleep. It’s really nice especially in the spring or autumn, when it’s not quite cold but not quite hot either.”

Naeun beamed at the view before her. None of her old schools had sprawling lands like this. She stretched her arms out to the sides and took it all in. She took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. _Ahhh… Nothing like fresh air to calm my mind… And my heart..._

When she opened her eyes again, she noticed another field in the distance with what looked like bleachers bordering it. She pointed and said, “What’s that?”

“Oh, that? That’s just the playgrounds. You know, soccer, baseball, track and field. We also have an indoor court for volleyball and basketball. Plus, the pool…”

“That’s _a lot_ of sports.”

Taemin snickered. “Not for Minho.”

“He plays _all_ of those?”

“More or less, but soccer is his specialty. Don’t try to compete with him though. I swear, he won’t stop until he beats you, even at video games.”

“Haha! Noted, then.” Naeun looked around some more and saw a domed glass building at the other end of the school yard. “What’s that?”

“Ah, that’s the greenhouse. It’s mostly for the gardening club. They grow fresh fruit and vegetables there and the school uses them for our cafeteria lunches.”

“That’s refreshing. All I can remember from my old schools were the untrustworthy amounts of mystery meat.”

Taemin laughed and gazed at her. _She looks really pretty with the wind gently blowing her hair like that…_ He didn’t really know what came over him, thinking like that. He mustered up his courage and just went with his gut. He held out his hand and said to Naeun, “Do you wanna come and see?”

Naeun looked at him and his hand. He had a gentle look on his face - one she hadn’t seen since they talked on the day she moved. Holding his hand might make people have the wrong impression about them. _Then again_ , she thought. _Nobody’s around._

With that, she let him take her hand and they ran over to the greenhouse. As they entered the glass dome, Naeun felt like she had entered a different world. Sure, there were rows for crops and fruit but there were also bushes blooming with bright flowers of almost all colors. “This is.... This is just beautiful…”

Taemin watched as she pitter-pattered her way on the grounds, as if afraid she might disturb the grass underneath. He felt his pulse race again as he watched her. He had been trying to ignore it the whole day but since they were alone, he just followed his instincts. He picked up a flower cutter and snipped off a white rose from a nearby bush. After making sure to remove all the thorns, he walked over to her, tapped her shoulder, and offered her the flower. 

“For you…” he said, barely able to meet her in the eyes. “Cuz, you know… It matches your dress and stuff…”

Naeun smiled and Taemin swore he saw her blushing. “Thank you,” she said, putting the flower behind her ear.” 

“Beautiful…” Taemin whispered. His heart was ready to explode out of his chest. Naeun didn’t reply but she couldn’t look at him either. _Did I come on too strong? Did I make it awkward now? Ugh, why can’t I get a grip?_

“Uhhhh… So, what about the school fair?” Naeun finally said. Both of them were relieved that a new topic had been brought up. “You haven’t told me about it yet.” They were walking out the greenhouse now and back to the school building.

“Ah… Well, the school fair is kind of like an open house to attract other students to enroll here. For us, it’s pretty much just for fun. There will be food kiosks, stalls where you can buy knick-knacks or play games. Of course, the main attraction will be the Music Showcase.”

“What’s that?”

“It's basically just a talent show where people dance, sing, play instruments, etc.”

“Is it a contest?”

“Yeah.”

“What does the winner get?”

“A nice trophy… Gift certificates… Bragging rights… That’s about it.”

“....Have you ever competed?”

Taemin held the door open for Naeun. “Yes, actually. I compete every year.”

“Yeah? What do you do?”

Taemin beamed at her in excitement. Finally, she would see a part of him that was just him - his true self. “I’ll show you.”

They were back in the hallway with the special classrooms. Taemin opened another door and this time, it was an empty room, save for cubby holes on one side and an audio system in one corner. The longest wall was lined with mirrors from floor to ceiling.

“A dance studio?” Naeun asked curiously. “You dance?”

“Yeah. I do…” Taemin said, looking at himself at the mirror while he softly did some moves from a choreography he just learned. “I’ve been dancing since middle school.”

Naeun watched as Taemin gracefully moved. Dancing looked so natural on him, like it was something he was born to do. She could see the expression on his face - gentle, relaxed, honest.

“You love it, huh?” she said, walking over beside him.

“Yeah, I really do,” Taemin answered, looking at his reflection in the mirror. “It just….It makes me feel like myself… No pretense… No image… No nothing… Just me and the music…”

Naeun sensed the sadness in his words. She wondered what he meant but felt like it was too early to ask. She placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. “Well, I’m sure you’ll do great this year. I’ll be cheering for you. Taemin, fighting!” 

Naeun held up her fist in encouragement. Taemin smiled at her, imitated her gesture, and fistbumped her. Suddenly, he noticed the time on his watch. “Well, I hate for this tour to end but we only have ten minutes until the next period.” 

“Oh, I didn’t even notice the time.” Naeun said, a hint of sadness in her voice.

“Let me show you to your locker.” Taemin closed the dance practice room and headed back to the locker area. As they became more and more surrounded by people, they slowly started to distance themselves from each other. They passed the hallway of lockers where his was and walked until they saw the number 718. 

“Well, here we are.” Taemin said, leaning against the metal cabinet. “Did you enjoy the tour?”

“Of course. Thank you, by the way.”

“Hey, it’s nothing. If you need anything else, I’m just over in the next hallway.” 

They smiled at each other again. This time, they weren’t afraid to meet each other’s eyes. Taemin opened his mouth but hesitated. _Come on, man. You’ve already gotten this far. Just do it!_

“So… After school, do you maybe want to hang-”

“Baby!” called a feminine voice. Before long, there was a long-haired girl with straight bangs walking towards Taemin. She was wearing an impossibly tight shirt with a deep neckline, a denim miniskirt which Naeun swore was _way_ against the dress code, and sandals with a low heel. She strutted over to Taemin, linked her arm around his, and gave him a kiss on the cheek. 

Naeun was taken aback. She looked at Taemin, trying to find answers in his eyes but he was now focused on the girl on his arm. She pretended not to notice as the girl quickly looked at her up and down before switching her attention back to Taemin.

“Oh, hi…” Taemin said, awkwardly. “This is-”

“Eunsook,” the girl said in a snobby tone, not afraid to show Naeun her disdain. “I’m Eunsook, Taemin’s _girlfriend_ …. And you are?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone!
> 
> I know this chapter has quite a few architectural descriptions of their school so I hope you guys can imagine it. If you want more clarification, feel free to PM or comment below! 
> 
> Also, I'd like to point out that this school is a bit more upscale (for the lack of a better word) than usual, and therefore, most of their students are also well-off.
> 
> Lastly, I don't want to use real people as "antagonists" so I'm just using SHINee's genderbent names from that skit where they dressed up as school girls. (In this case, Eunsook is the genderbent name of Onew. XD )
> 
> That's it for today. I hope you liked the chapter! I'd love to know what you think, especially if you have constructive criticism. Feel free to comment below! I'll see you next week! :D


	6. Chapter 6

_“Eunsook,” the girl said in a snobby tone, not afraid to show Naeun her disdain. “I’m Eunsook, Taemin’s girlfriend…. And you are?”_

“Naeun,” she reached out her hand to shake Eunsook’s. “I’m Naeun. I’m new here.”

Eunsook ignored her gesture and glared at Taemin. 

“I was just showing her around.” Taemin said nonchalantly. “She’s just a _friend_.”

_Friend, huh?_ Naeun thought. _Well, of course I am. What else did I expect?_

“Why couldn’t Jinki do it?” Eunsook prodded.

Taemin sighed and put his arm around her waist for reassurance. “Because he had student council stuff to take care of. Don’t worry about it, okay?” He kissed her cheek for good measure. 

Eunsook giggled a little too much and held Taemin’s hand. “Walk me to class?” she said. Taemin nodded. As they walked away, Taemin glanced back at Naeun and gave her a small wave and a slightly regretful smile. Naeun tried her best to smile back but she was still uncomfortable with what she had witnessed. 

After opening her locker, she removed the flower from her ear and remembered their conversation. _Beautiful, he said. Maybe he meant the flower, not me._ She proceeded to arrange her books and her other school supplies. She checked her schedule. Her first subject was Literature in Room 112. _Okay, I have to hurry up. I don’t want to be late on my first day._ Upon gathering the books she needed, she placed the flower on top of the books in her locker, hoping to distract herself with her studies instead. 

As she closed her locker, she was startled by a girl with a black chin-length bob who was wearing a crop top with high-waisted jeans. She was gathering her books from the locker right beside Naeun’s. 

“Hi,” she said. “I’m Son Chaeyoung. You’re new here, right?” The girl looked friendly enough. She had big eyes, pink lips, and a beauty mark just below the left side of her lips. Her black bob cut made her look sophisticated despite being just of high school age. 

“Yeah. I’m Naeun.” This time, she was able to shake the girl’s hand. “Son Naeun.” 

Chaeyoung was about to speak when a tall girl with wavy strawberry blonde hair approached them. “Hey, Chae! Let’s go! We don’t want to be late for-” She saw Naeun awkwardly standing there and realized she had interrupted a conversation.”

“Oh my gosh, how rude of me.” the blonde said. “I’m Park Chaeyoung, but everybody calls me Rosé. Are you new here?”

Naeun was a bit taken aback. Of course she had seen other people with dyed hair from all the schools that she had been in, but no one like Rosé. Her hair looked so natural on her. Naeun tried picturing her with black hair but she thought that the blonde hair looked much better. Her long printed kimono jacket and short white dress underneath gave her a graceful hippie-chic look. Realizing that she had been staring too long, she finally answered her.

“Yeah, I’m new. I’m Naeun.” she shook her hand. _Well at least some of the girls here are polite. Or maybe Eunsook was just rude?_

“Nice to meet you. Where are you from?”

“Oh, umm, well, I moved around a lot for a while.” Naeun shrugged and smiled at the two. “You know, being an army brat and all.”

Naeun was still holding her schedule when Chaeyoung asked her if she could see it. “Hey, we all have Literature for our next class. Come on, guys.”

The three started walking down the hall then turned left - opposite of where Taemin took her. “So, Naeun, tell us more about yourself.” Chaeyoung said.

“Okay, ummm... I’m sixteen, I’ve moved around a lot for the past nine years, I’m Catholic…” Naeun pondered while walking beside the two. “I think I’ve run out of things to tell you guys. I mean, there’s nothing much to tell.”

“Well, I have a question,” Chaeyoung asked. “What’s with you and Lee Taemin?”

Rosé’s eyes widened and she stood in front of the two. “There’s something between you and Lee Taemin?”

“Okay, calm down, Rosé. She might feel uncomfortable about telling us.”

At this point, Naeun was very confused but decided to indulge them. “There’s really _nothing_ between me and him.” She made sure to emphasize the “nothing” in that sentence. “We’re just friends. We’re childhood friends, actually. He’s also my neighbor.”

Chaeyoung and Rosé exchanged a look. “Wow, possible game-changer,” Chaeyoung said. 

“So you spent homeroom period with him?” Rosé asked, continuing to walk beside the girls. “How was it? What did you guys do?”

“Nothing, really. He just showed me around school.”

“Really? Nothing? He didn’t even flirt with you?”

_That’s a very good question. Did he really flirt with me?_

“I...don’t know. I guess not. I mean, he has a girlfriend anyway.”

“Okay, Rule Number 1 about Lee Taemin: He _never_ has a girlfriend. He just has dates.”

“Question, why do you guys keep using his full name?”

Rosé replied, “I guess we’ve gotten used to it. Besides, we don’t even know him well so it seems appropriate.”

“That,” added Chaeyoung, “ _And_ he’s infamous for being a playboy.”

_Wow_ , Naeun thought, _Things sure have changed with him._ Despite what the girls said, she decided to reserve judgement. After all, she and Taemin were friends, right?

“Okay, enough about him,” Rosé replied, waving her hand as if shooing a fly away. “Have you met other people yet?”

“Yeah, I met Taemin’s friends actually - Onew, Jonghyun, Key, and Minho.”

“Oh, I’m friends with Jjong! We’re in the Music Club together!” said Rosé.

“Hey, how come you haven’t introduced me to him?” Chaeyoung said. 

“Because I know you have a crush on him.”

“Yes! And as my friend, it is your job to help me meet the love of my life!”

“So you think Jonghyun is the love of your life?”

“He could be if you introduced me to him.”

“Hmmm… I’ll think about it…”

“I’ll give you my lunch dessert for a whole month!”

“Hmmm….We’ll see. We’ll see.” Rosé winked at Naeun, who giggled quietly to herself.

Once they reached Room 112, Naeun hesitated a bit to step inside. She had done this a hundred times over the past nine years. Why was she so nervous now?

“Hey, you okay?” Chaeyoung said. 

Naeun came to her senses and entered. “Y-Yeah, I’m fine.. First day jitters, I guess…” She forced a tight smile.

“Come sit with us. It’ll make you feel better.”

“Really?”

“Sure! What are friends for?”

Naeun smiled for real this time. It was the first day of school and she already had two new friends. For someone who had moved around all her life, she was doing pretty well. She sat adjacent to Chaeyoung and Rosé. When she got settled, she looked around and recognized a familiar face. It was Minho from earlier. The class hadn’t even started and he already looked bored to death. When he saw Naeun though, he made a friendly wave accompanied with a goofy smile. Right after she returned the gesture, their teacher entered the room. 

“Good morning, everyone!” Ms. Song addressed the whole room. She was a woman with shoulder-length hair and thin bangs, wearing a white blouse and a lavender a-line skirt. Sher looked young and fresh but still serious at the same time. “Today, we’ll be continuing our discussion about The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. But first, we have a new student today.”

Ms. Song gestured to Naeun and immediately, all eyes were on her. Again, Naeun had done this countless times before but she still couldn’t shake off her nerves.

“Ms. Son, can you please come to the front of the class and introduce yourself?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello guys!
> 
> First of all, I know this chapter is a bit short but I hope you still enjoyed it. I just wanted to build context around Naeun without Taemin and the rest of SHINee (well, except a teeny bit of Minho XD ).
> 
> Also, remember how I said that I'll be using real celebrities as side characters? Well, here they are. If you don't know who they are, let me clarify. It's Rosé from Blackpink and Chaeyoung from Twice. I chose Chaeyoung because I was looking for an idol with the same last name as Naeun (because the I made the locker system alphabetical in this fanfic). Then, when I checked her bio, it said that she and Rosé were close. So, I decided to include Rosé! Also, Ms. Song is the actress, Song Hye-kyo. I based her looks on what she looked like in Descendants of the Sun (where our dear Onew starred in as well). 
> 
> Disclaimer: The way they act in this fanfic is in no way a reflection of how they act in real life. Also, Chaeyoung doesn't really have a crush on Jonghyun (as far as I know). Again, I decided to use real people so that you guys can visualize them better. 
> 
> Also, I know the story is kind of going slow. Don't worry, it's going to get interesting really soon. ;)
> 
> Thank you for reading! See you next week! :D


	7. Chapter 7

_“Today, we’ll be continuing our discussion about The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. But first, we have a new student today. Ms. Son, can you please come to the front of the class and introduce yourself?”_

_Ugh, here we go again. I’ve done this so many times and it never gets any easier._

She could feel all eyes on her as she walked towards the front. Ms. Song nodded and gave her a nod and a reassuring smile. 

“H-Hi guys… I’m Son Naeun. I just transferred here from Cheongdam High School. I..uhh.. I hope I can make a lot of friends here.” She spoke with a grin plastered on her face. It was her go-to public speaking expression. _You can do this. Just a few more seconds then you can go back to your seat and stay invisible for the rest of the period._

Ms. Song’s voice cut through her reverie. “It’s nice to meet you, Naeun. What’s your favorite book?”

Her favorite book always changed from time to time so she chose to stick to the most recent one she read. “Ummm… Stardust by Neil Gaiman.”

“Ah, good choice. Gaiman’s one of my favorite modern authors too. Thank you for introducing yourself. You can go back to your seat now.”

Naeun bowed her head at Ms. Song and made her way back to her chair. As she sat down, she noticed Chaeyoung and Rosé smiling at her and giving her a thumbs up. She smiled back. _Yup, I think I’m doing good so far. Just one step at a time._

While Ms. Song was kind, her lectures were dull to say the least. Half of the class was distracted and Naeun was doing her best to pay attention. Chaeyoung was already dozing off and Rosé was sneakily dotting her friend’s arm with her blue marker. Naeun looked over at Minho’s direction and saw him fast asleep while cradling his head with his right arm. After what seemed like hours and hours, the bell rang and woke everybody up. 

“Okay, class. That’s all for today,” said Ms. Song, as the students were packing up. “I’ll see you on Wednesday. Before you go, Naeun and Minho, I need to speak with you both.”

_What? What could I have possibly done to get in trouble? It’s only the first day._ Naeun furrowed her brow and exchanged a look with Minho. He shrugged in response. Nervously, they walked over to Mrs. Song.

“Okay, you two. I don’t know if you’ve heard from your classmates but you will be submitting a report in two weeks about The Little Prince. Your classmates have already paired up but since you were away for a soccer game last week, Mr. Choi, and you’re new here, Ms. Son, I’ll be pairing you two with each other. Would both of you be alright with that?”

The two looked at each other again and back to Ms. Song. When they nodded, their teacher gave them a nod and dismissed them both.

“So, are you going to be okay with this project?” Minho asked her, slinging his bag over his shoulder. 

Naeun nodded. “Yeah. I mean, I’ve read The Little Prince a couple of times already before so-” 

“Umm… I kind of meant with me being your partner. Will that be weird for you?”

“Why would that be weird?”

“Because of you and Taemin. I mean, I don’t want to get in the way-”

“Minho, Taemin and I are just _friends_.”

“Really?”

“Yes.” Naeun and Minho nodded at each other. 

“Okay, good enough for me,” he said. “What’s your next class?”

Naeun checked her schedule. “Umm, I have History in Room 214..?”

“Oh, that’s on my way. Do you want to walk together?”

“Sure.”

At first, there was an awkward silence. The usually talkative and outspoken Minho was now replaced by a boy who kept looking at anything but the girl beside him. Naeun felt that too, but something was bothering her. She gathered her courage to ask him. It was now or never.

“Hey, Minho?” she said. “Why did you think Taemin and I…. had a thing?”

“I’m not sure, to be honest. It’s just that… when he talks about you… well, it’s different. But hey, if you say you’re just friends, then I believe you.”

“Don’t worry. We are. I think that girl, Eunsook, made that _very_ clear this morning.”

“Ahhh, so you’ve met her?” 

“Kind of? She was a bit rude, though.”

“Yup, you’re right about that…”

“Does Taemin usually date girls like her?” _Huh? Why did I ask? Why did I care?_ Naeun kept her eyes on the stairs they were climbing. She didn’t want Minho to see her curious expression.

“Depends…” Minho sensed a question that Naeun was hesitating to ask. “I wouldn’t worry about it too much if I were you. They’ll be over soon. End of the week, tops.”

“So he really is a playboy, huh?”

“Well, I don’t really like to use that term since he’s my friend…”

“Oh, no. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to offend-”

“No! No! Don’t worry. I understand what you mean… and yes, I guess you can say he is.”

Minho stopped in front of a door marked Room 214. 

“Here’s your stop, Naeun.” Minho grinned goofily again. 

Naeun could see why people liked him so much. He was very easy-going and friendly, like someone you can open up to without fear of being judged.

“Thanks, Minho.” _You’ve already made two friends. Just go for it._ “Hey, umm…” she started to say. “Do you want to make this a regular thing? As in walking together after Lit class?”

“Oh, sure! That way, we can also talk about our project. Kill two birds with one stone.”

“Okay then. Thank you, again.”

“No problem.” Naeun smiled and turned to enter the room when Minho spoke again. 

“Oh, and Naeun?”

“Yes?”

“Don’t worry. There’s more to Lee Taemin than what people think.”

With that, Minho gave her a wink and made his way down the hall. 

Naeun entered the room and got settled on a desk beside the window. She looked out and saw the school yard. She remembered Taemin grabbing her hand and leading her to the greenhouse. 

_Hmm… Curiouser and curiouser…_

~*~

When the bell rang at noon, the students filed into the cafeteria. Naeun was overwhelmed by the sea of people filling up the huge room. Once she was able to find her bearings, she fell in line and ordered her lunch like the others. By the time she got her food, almost everybody was already in their seats with their friends. Even after nine years of moving, finding a place to sit during lunch was still a dilemma. She spotted a table on the far end and made a beeline towards it when she heard someone call her name. 

“Naeun!” She turned around and saw Chaeyoung waving her arm at her and calling her. “Come sit with us!”

Naeun exhaled a sigh of relief. She headed to their table and sat down. 

“Hey, we’re sorry we disappeared right after Lit,” Rosé said. “Chae and I had Chemistry all the way on the other side of the building so we had to rush.”

“Oh, don’t worry about it.” Naeun said, secretly glad that they didn’t just ditch her. 

“We heard Ms. Song talked to you and Minho after class.” Chaeyoung said, taking a bite out of her cheeseburger. “What did she want?”

“It was no big deal. She just paired us up for the report.”

Suddenly, a girl in a white long sleeved shirt, denim shorts, and red high-tops sat at their table. She had dark wavy hair until past her shoulders and a thin fringe like Ms. Song. 

“Ugh! I can’t believe they ran out of cupcakes again!”

“Well, maybe if you hurried, you’d be able to get some before they run out,” Rosé replied, clearly amused. Naeun looked at the cupcake on her own tray and stifled a laugh.

“Ah, Eunji-yah! Meet our new friend,” Chaeyoung gestured to Naeun. “This is Son Naeun. She’s new. She just transferred here from Cheongdam.”

“Hi!” Eunji said, shaking Naeun’s hand. “I’m Jung Eunji.”

“I’m Son Naeun, and here… We can split the cupcake if you want.” Naeun grinned. There was something about this school, about these people, that made her feel more at home. _Maybe that’s why my social skills have drastically gone up today._

“For real? Yes, please!” Eunji sliced off a bit of the cupcake with her fork and ate it. “Ugh, heaven! I like you already!”

The four continued chatting while having lunch when they heard a commotion on the other end of the cafeteria.

“YOU JERK! I NEVER WANT TO SEE YOU AGAIN!”

Naeun saw an angry, crying Eunsook running out of the cafeteria and Taemin drenched in what looks like soda, standing and speechless. Nobody said a word. Nobody laughed, nobody whispered. Nothing. Then Onew’s voice resonated throughout the room. 

“Alright, guys,” he said, standing on his chair. “Show’s over. You can all get back to your lunches now.”

As if on cue, everybody did. Naeun seemed to be the only one bothered about what just happened.

“Guys, what was that?” she asked her new friends.

“Oh, the usual. Taemin dumps a girl and sometimes, she makes a scene,” Eunji said. “It’s not the first time and I highly doubt it’s going to be the last.”

“Hey, be polite,” Rosé said. “Taemin is Naeun’s friend.”

“OMG, for real?”

“Yeah,” Naeun replied, twirling her fork into her spaghetti. “It’s okay. I mean I feel kind of bad for the girl but she was a little mean to me anyway.”

“Mmhm,” Chaeyoung added. “You should have seen the way Eunsook snubbed Naeun a while ago.” 

Naeun slid the whole cupcake over to Eunji, who was giddy at the gesture.

“Oh well…” she said, about a quarter away from finishing the dessert. “Karma’s a bitch.”

~*~

Only minutes after the Eunsook incident, everyone was carrying on like nothing happened. Taemin stepped out of the cafeteria and went to his locker to get his extra shirt. It wasn’t the first time a girl threw her drink at him and it probably won’t be the last. 

When he got back to the cafeteria, he saw his rowdy friends playing around again. For some reason, Minho was holding Key down, Jonghyun was trying to force Key’s mouth open, and Onew was recording it all on his phone. Taemin was very confused when he approached them.

“What’s happening here?” he said.

“TAEMIN-AH! HELP!” Key yelled as he tried to resist the athlete’s hold on him. 

“We’re force-feeding Key some carrots,” Onew replied, still taking a video of the scene. “Wanna join us?”

Taemin laughed and put a carrot stick in Key’s mouth. Jonghyun forced Key’s mouth closed until he was sure he swallowed it.

“ONEW! WHY ARE YOU LETTING THIS HAPPEN?” Key wailed.

The whole cafeteria was starting to look their way. Finally, Minho and Jjong let go of him. Key downed a whole glass of juice to get rid of the taste of carrots in his mouth. 

“Onew-ah! Why?” Key insisted.

“Remember that time you made me eat that whole clove of garlic?” Onew said, smirking.

“What!? That was _years_ ago!”

“You underestimate how long I can hold a grudge.“

“That’s true,” Jonghyun said. “Never make Onew mad.”

“Ugh, shut up.” Key rolled his eyes and grumpily continued to eat his lunch. 

While they were eating, Minho couldn’t resist and finally addressed the elephant in the room.

“You okay, Taemin?” Minho said, placing his hand on Taemin’s shoulder.

“Yeah, I’m good.” Taemin always had a blank expression after dumping a girl. “I just… didn’t expect to take a shower of Coke today.”

“Are you going to be okay?”

“Yeah, guys.” Taemin shrugged. “Come on. It’s fine. I’ll be fine. It’s not like this hasn’t happened before.”

The five boys ate in silence until Jonghyun spoke up.

“So how’d it go with Naeun this morning?”

Taemin stopped eating. “It was fine. I showed her where we hang out and stuff.”

“Even the spot at the library?”

“Yeah he did.” Onew replied, waiting for Taemin’s reaction.

“Diroriii!” Key replied with a surprised look at Taemin. “You _never_ bring girls there…”

“Yeah, well, she’s different. She’s a friend.”

“I’ve been hearing that a lot today,” Minho said. “Ms. Song partnered me and Naeun up for Lit class.”

“What? Why?” 

“Because I didn’t get to pair up last week because of the soccer game and she’s new. We were the only two left without partners, so there.”

Taemin sighed and rested his chin on his arm. 

“Taemin, don’t worry. We’re just friends,” Minho reassured. “She asked about you though.”

“Yeah? What did she say?” 

“Well, I think she has heard about your ‘playboy’ image.”

“After what happened a while ago, I’m sure she got the picture.” Key said, finally calm.

“Ugh…” Taemin buried his face in his hands. “Why….”

“What’s wrong?”

“I don’t want her hearing those things about me, especially not from people who don’t know me at all.”

“Yeah, well you can’t control how other people see you or talk about you.”

“Hmph. I can control something else though.”

Taemin took a deep breath, exhaled, and stood up. He made his way to where Naeun and her friends were sitting.

“Naeun, can I walk you home later?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everybody!
> 
> So... that was something, huh? So many things happened in just one chapter.
> 
> I don't really have much to say except that I hope I made up for the super short chapter last week. :D
> 
> Things are gonna get interesting soon. Patience, my darlings. Patience. ;)
> 
> That's all for this chapter. Thank you so much for reading! See you next week! :)


	8. Chapter 8

_“Naeun, can I walk you home later?”_

Taemin stood beside Naeun and her friends’ table, with his sweetest smile - the one that usually makes the girls weak in the knees.

The four girls looked up at him, then at each other, then at Naeun. The silence was piercing and Taemin could swear he saw tumbleweed rolling around between them. 

“U-Uhhh…” Naeun stuttered. “C-Can we talk in private?”

Taemin nodded and made his way to the back wall of the cafeteria. 

“Excuse me, girls,” Naeun said, taking her bag with her.

“Good luck!” Eunji whispered.

As Naeun made her way to where Taemin was waiting, she left her friends bewildered. The three girls huddled and whispered.

“Oh my God,” Chaeyoung said. “Did he just ask her out?”

“I don’t know,” Rosé replied. “Does it count, though? I mean, they’re neighbors.”

“Guys, I’m so lost,” Eunji said, all confused. “What’s happening?”

“Ugh, okay. Let me brief you.” Chaeyoung said as she told Eunji about what she knew about the pair.

Meanwhile, the four boys were not-so-subtly trying to see what was going on too. Rosé looked over at Jonghyun. 

_What’s happening?_ She mouthed at him. He shrugged and mouthed _I don’t know_ in return.

Despite their “sneaky” attempts to see what was happening, all they could do was wait.

~*~

“Hey, Tae.” Naeun said to the boy leaning against the wall with his arms crossed in front of him.

“Hey…” he replied. “I was just wondering if I can walk you home later.” He told himself to be confident even though he was slowly starting to sweat nervously. _Yo, chill out. You’ve done this many times before. Be cool. She’s just like the other girls._ Except he knew deep inside that she was not. 

“I mean,” he continued. “I was already going to ask you a while ago but… ummm..”

“...Eunsook happened?”

Suddenly, Taemin couldn’t look her in the eye. He shuffled his feet and fiddled with his fingers. 

“Umm...Yeah. By any chance, you didn’t see the...umm...”

“Yeah, I did. I think the whole cafeteria did.”

Taemin felt his face grow hot. Naeun couldn’t help giggling as she saw his cheeks turn pink from embarrassment. 

“....You still smell like Coke, by the way” Naeun said, trying to hold back her laughter. “I’m sorry. I really shouldn’t laugh.”

Taemin tried to put on a straight face but a smile forced its way out, making him and Naeun laugh out loud completely.

“It’s okay,” he said when they calmed down. “I need a long shower to get the smell out of my hair though.”

Naeun grinned and sighed. _He’s cute when he laughs…_ It was her turn to blush.

Taemin asked again. “So, what do you say? Can I walk you home?”

“Well, since we’re neighbors, you’d be walking home too.”

“I mean, yeah, but you know, it’s not just me-”

For some reason, Naeun smiled as the boy in front of her stuttered and tried to find his way with words. _Is he always like this or is he just nervous because of me?_ She secretly hoped it was the second. 

“Yes.” she said, interrupting his rambling. “You can walk me home. I’d like that.”

When he heard her say yes, Taemin couldn’t help smiling. _Okay, calm down. Why can’t I stop smiling?_

The bell interrupted their conversation and students started to clean up after themselves. They started to file out of the room and head to their next class.

“Okay then. I’ll meet you at your locker at around 3?” Taemin said.

“Okay. See you then!”

Naeun tried to hide her smile as her friends approached her. 3PM couldn’t come fast enough.

~*~

“Someone’s got a daaa-ate!” Jonghyun singsonged to Taemin, who was fixing his hair using a mirror from Key. He was trying to avoid looking at his friends so that they won’t see him turning red and smiling like there was no tomorrow. All four of them were crowded around him. Even the ever-busy Onew was leaning on the lockers and grinning at his friend. 

“I-It’s not a date…” he replied, fiddling with a few strands of hair for the nth time.

“Oh, really?” Key replied. “Look me in the eye and say that.”

Key turned Taemin around to face him. He fixed his steely gaze on the younger boy’s eyes. Taemin tried to glare back but lost. As always, Key could always tell when one of them was lying.

“Diroriii!” Key said. “He’s excited!” 

“OooooOOOOooooohhhh!” All four of them teased Taemin, causing people to turn their heads towards them. 

“Shut up! You guys are embarrassing me!” Taemin couldn’t say that with a straight face. He hid his smiles and laughter with his hand. He checked his watch and grinned at the time. “Okay, I gotta go now. See you guys tomorrow!”

He waved goodbye as he made his way to Naeun’s locker.

“Look both ways before you cross the street!”  
“Beware of strangers!”  
“Use protection!”

~*~

“Guys, I’ll be fine!” Naeun insisted, playing with the rose that Taemin gave her earlier that day. “It’s just Taemin. We’re friends. We’re _neighbors_.”

“Wait, you need a little mascara.” Eunji dug into her make-up pouch and tended to Naeun. “Look up.”

As Eunji did Naeun’s make-up, Rosé brushed her hair, making it fall in soft waves instead of just straight down.

“Okay, we’ll let you go if you promise to tell us _everything_ tomorrow.” Chaeyoung said. “Eunji, I think she needs a bit of lip tint.”

“Got it.” Eunji said, applying a soft pink color to Naeun’s lips.

The three girls asked her to turn around as they looked at her. 

“Okay, you’re ready! Have fun at your date!” Rosé said, hugging the petite girl.

Naeun hugged her back. They had only known each other for one day and yet, they treated her like they’ve known each other for years. She smiled at the thought. As she hugged the blonde, she saw Taemin heading their way. She let go of Rosé and shut her locker. As he approached them, she gave him a small wave. 

“Hey…” Taemin smiled as he came face to face with Naeun.

“Hey…” she replied, still fiddling with the rose in her hands.

“Hey!” greeted the three girls behind her simultaneously. 

“Oh! I’m sorry,” Naeun said, realizing that her friends were still behind her. “Taemin, this is Chaeyoung, Eunji, and Rosé.”

“Hi. Nice to meet you girls.” Taemin replied, shaking their hands. “I’ve met you before, right?” He asked Rosé. 

“Yup! I’m in the Music Club with Jjong. I’m actually heading there right now… Come on, girls.”

“What?” Eunji said. “But Music Club is on Wednes-OH!” The two girls were glaring at her and pulling her away. “Okay, okay. Bye Naeun! Bye Taemin!” She said as the three of them walked away, leaving the two alone.

“So….” Taemin said, “Shall we?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone! 
> 
> Okay, this is probably the most _evil_ cliffhanger I've done (so far ;) ) but I hope you still enjoyed it.
> 
> Again my darlings, patience is a virtue. You'll get a big dose of Taeun in the next chapter. ;)
> 
> Thank you for reading! I'll see you next week! :)


	9. Chapter 9

The first few minutes of the walk home were awkward to say the least. The pair subconsciously walked a little bit faster until they were far enough from the school, especially from prying eyes. But now that they were alone, they didn’t know what to say or do. 

Taemin was usually the chatterbox during the beginning of his dates, until the girl felt comfortable enough to talk freely around him. This time, however, he couldn’t find the words to say. He glanced at her and noticed that she was carrying some of her books.

“H-Hey,” he said. “Let me carry those for you.” _Oh, thank God. I finally said something._

“Are you sure?” Naeun said. 

“Of course. Chivalry isn’t dead, you know.” Taemin replied with a grin. 

There was electricity when their hands briefly touched as Naeun handed him her Math book and binder. He didn’t notice that she still had the flower in her hands.

“So…” Naeun said, wracking her brain for something to say. _Why am I so nervous? He’s just a friend. He’s just walking me home._ “How was the rest of your day?”

“I think I should be asking you that. After all, it was your first day at a new school.”

“I think it was okay. Maybe more than okay… I mean, I already made a couple of friends… Chaeyoung, Eunji, Rosé… I guess, maybe Minho too…”

“Ahhh… Well, Minho is Minho, and those girls seem nice… But where do I fit in?”

He raised his eyebrow and smirked at her. Naeun didn’t have an answer for him at the moment so she changed the topic.

“Hey, let’s play 20 questions,” she said.

“Isn’t that a bit much? What about 10?”

“Fine. You go first.”

“Hmmm…” Taemin thought. _Should I go for it? It’s just me and her now... Might as well..._ “Okay. What did you hear about me?” 

“Hmm…” Naeun replied, wondering why he asked. “Are you sure you want to know?”

“Yes, and that doesn’t count as a question.”

“Okay. Well, they said that you were a playboy, and that you didn’t have girlfriends. You have _dates_.”

Taemin frowned but didn’t let Naeun see. _Way to make a first impression._

“My turn.” Naeun said. “Is what they say true?” 

_Uh-oh. Guilty as charged._ “Umm… Yeah. I suppose it is… “

“Oh…” The girl looked away to hide her disappointment. “Uhh… Your turn.”

“Have you ever dated?” 

Naeun froze at the question. _The tables have turned._

“No, actually.”

“Why not?” 

“That counts as a question,” Naeun smirked. “Well, I guess I didn’t want to make commitments like that, especially since I knew I would transfer schools sooner or later.”

_She has a point._ Taemin thought. _But she’s here for good now. Does that change things?_

Naeun looked at him as they were walking. “My turn. Why do you have ‘just dates and not girlfriends?’” 

Taemin bit his lip. He knew she would eventually ask him so why couldn’t he still think of an answer?

“Same as you, I guess. I just didn’t want to make commitments like that.”

“Why?” 

“That counts as a question, and I don’t know…” Taemin looked down at his feet, not knowing the answer himself. “I guess it’s just not my thing…” 

Naeun was curious but she didn’t want to pry. “Vague answer, but okay. Your turn.”

Taemin wanted to lighten the mood so he raised his confidence again. “Do you have a type?” 

“A type? What do you mean?”

“I mean what type of guys do you like?”

“Ahhh… I like bad boys.”

Taemin stopped and raised his eyebrows at her. “Really?”

Naeun gave him a serious look, but started to laugh after a while. “No! I don’t like bad boys!”

Taemin started to laugh with her. _She’s comfortable enough to make jokes around me, huh? I guess that’s a good sign._ “So what is it?”

Naeun pondered. She had never really thought about it before. “I guess I like the type of guy who’s honest and manly. I like guys who can protect me, but not be overprotective. That makes sense, right?”

“Yeah, it does.” Taemin answered. _Am I that type of guy?_

“What about you?” Naeun said. “What’s your type?” 

“I don’t think I really have one… Maybe if I meet the right girl, I’ll know.”

_Does that mean I have a shot? Wait, I don’t even like him that way… I think…_

“My turn!” Taemin said. He wanted to do a little more digging. “Were you happy when we talked the day you moved back?” 

Naeun blushed and smiled. “Yes, I was…” Suddenly, she remembered what Jonghyun said before Key and Minho dragged him away. “Have you really been talking to your friends about me?” 

_Dammit, Jjong._ Taemin sighed, paused, and looked Naeun in the eye. It was the first time that afternoon that he felt comfortable enough to do that. “Yes, I have.”

“What have you been saying?” 

“You want the truth?”

Naeun nodded.

“Okay… They know all about you moving. A lot of the time, I would tell them that I missed you.”

Naeun felt her heart pounding in her chest. She could feel the sincerity and sadness in his voice. 

“My turn,” Taemin said. “What about you? Did you miss me when you moved away?” 

“Yeah, I did. A lot.” Naeun gave him a reassuring smile. 

“Do you… Umm… Do you believe it when people say I’m a playboy?” 

“Well, I’ve only been here for one day. I’m still reserving judgement.”

“Fair enough. Your turn.”

“Do you really date girls for only _one_ week?” 

Taemin stifled a laugh. “Okay, that’s an exaggeration. I date them for a couple of days or weeks, but not _one_ week precisely.”

“Okay. I have a follow-up question,” Naeun said. “Do you always date girls like Eunsook?” 

“Meaning?”

“I mean like…” Naeun felt self-conscious. She didn’t want Taemin to think she cared too much about his dating life. “Like… umm… Confident? Sexy?” 

“Hmm… That really depends on your definition of confident and sexy.”

Before they knew it, they had arrived at Naeun’s front porch. Taemin finally noticed the white rose in her hand. He exchanged it for the book and binder that he carried for her on the way home. 

“So, we’re here…” Taemin said. He twirled the flower between his fingers. He felt so comfortable now, and he didn’t want this to end just yet. “You know, we still have a couple of questions left.”

“Okay. May I ask something?”

“Shoot.”

Naeun shuffled her feet and held her book close to her chest. She really didn’t want to ask this but it’s been on her mind the whole day. 

“Back when we were at the greenhouse… you gave me the flower… and I put it behind my ear… and you said ‘Beautiful…’” She took a deep breath and finally asked him. “Did you mean the flower or me?” 

Taemin looked at the flower in his hands and smiled. Gently, he tucked Naeun’s hair behind her ear and placed it there like she did this morning in the greenhouse. 

“Both,” he answered. “But mostly you.”

Naeun’s cheeks felt hot and she was so sure that she was blushing. She was speechless. After finding out that he was dating Eunsook at the time, she thought he really meant that it was just the flower.

“My turn,” he said. It was funny how at the beginning, he could barely look at Naeun. Now, he couldn’t take his eyes off her, even if he tried. “Did you enjoy walking home with me?” 

Naeun nodded and smiled at him. She felt like she was looking at a different Taemin now - a Taemin that was more himself than he was at school. She liked it. She liked this side of him. “Yes, I really did.” 

“Was this a date?” she asked, not being able to control her smile. _He’s gazing back at me, and he’s smiling, and he’s so handsome…_ She prayed he couldn’t hear her heart beating right out of her chest. 

“Do you want it to be?” 

He reached for her hand and held it, brushing his thumb softly over her fingers. Naeun nodded, feeling the warmth of Taemin’s hand on hers.

Taemin smiled. “Can I walk you home again tomorrow?” 

“Yes, you can.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello, hello, hello everyone!
> 
> As promised, here's your long-awaited dose of Taeun! I really hoped that you liked it!
> 
> While writing this, I actually had to put color-coded numbers to check how many questions Naeun and Taemin had already asked. This was fun to write though.
> 
> By the way, there's more Taeun fluff coming up! ;)
> 
> Thank you for reading! I'll see you next week! :)


	10. Chapter 10

_“Can I walk you home again tomorrow?”_

_“Yes, you can.”_

And so he did for the rest of the week. Before they walked home, Naeun and Taemin would go on dates after school. The following day, Taemin took her to his favorite coffee shop. After giving their order, they found a cozy corner with plush chairs and a round table in between. Not long after, the barista brought them their drinks and a donut for sharing. 

“Thank you,” Naeun said, taking a slow sip of her hot latte from the mug. She smiled, closed her eyes, and sighed. 

Taemin was watching her the whole time. “How do you like it?”

“It’s really good. Is that why you like it here?”

“It’s not the only reason,” Taemin replied, taking a sip of his own drink. “

“What is it then?”

“Hmm…” Taemin leaned back and pondered. “Maybe it’s because not a lot of people from school know about this place. Sometimes, I just want to have some alone time and I can get that here.”

“So why did you bring me here then?”

“I don’t know… This is going to sound so cheesy but I like sharing these places with you. I mean, I already showed you around my secret spots in school. Why not this?”

Naeun felt flattered at his words. “Well, thank you for sharing… But, may I ask you something?”

“Sure. What is it?”

“I don’t want to sound invasive but have you brought other girls here?”

“Nope. Just you.” Taemin smiled as Naeun reddened.

“So where do you take the girls you date?”

“I just let them choose where to go. Sometimes, they want to go to the mall and go shopping. Sometimes, they want to go to some fancy restaurant.”

“I assume it’s all under your expenses?”

“Yeah.”

“But do you enjoy your time with them?”

“Eh, sometimes. If I really don’t enjoy her company, I break up with her right away.”

“Oh, okay…”

Naeun nursed her coffee. She suddenly turned quiet.

“There’s something on your mind, isn’t there?”

“Yes…”

“Tell me…”

“No. You might get offended.”

Taemin smirked and took another sip of his drink. “You’re wondering if I've done _it_ , aren’t you?”

Naeun choked on her drink and took a few seconds before she could reply. “Y-Yeah, but you don’t have to answer that and I didn’t want to assume and I just-”

“Nope, I haven't.”

“What?”

“I'm a virgin. I may date a lot of girls but deep inside, I’m still a somewhat good Catholic boy.”

Naeun subtly breathed a sigh of relief. _Okay, that’s good. But why does that matter? Will I like him less if he weren’t?_ Since her question was answered, she changed the topic. 

“Oh, I’m Catholic too. What’s your baptism name?”

“Francesco. What about you?”

“Marcella.”

“That’s a beautiful name,” Taemin said as he sliced a part of the donut and ate it. “Why don’t you use it?”

Naeun shrugged and sliced a piece for herself. “I don’t know. Naeun just seems more natural. I feel like Marcella doesn’t suit me. When I hear Marcella, I picture this beautiful, elegant woman who shops in Paris or something.”

“And you think you’re not beautiful and elegant?”

Taemin rested his elbows on his knees and examined as Naeun blushed and quietly chewed on another piece of the donut. 

“Well, I think you are,” he said.

“Thank you,” Naeun smiled at him.

“So can I call you Marcella?”

“If I say yes, can I call you Francesco?”

Taemin grinned and laughed. “Fine, you can.”

“You know what…” Naeun said, grinning mischievously. “I think Francesco is too long. What about Frank?”

“Okay, if you call me that, I get to call you Marcy.”

“Deal.” The two shook hands but didn’t let go.

“So we’re doing pet names now?” Naeun said as Taemin offered her the last piece of the donut.

“Yes, I suppose we are.”

~*~ 

On Wednesday, Taemin took her to a karaoke place. When they heard about it, Jonghyun and Rosé wanted to come. 

“No, Jjong. You can’t come.” Taemin said, crossing his arms.

“Why noooot?” Jonghyun whined. 

“Because you hog the mic all the time and nobody else gets a chance to sing.”

“Come on, Jjong,” Minho said. “Let them have some quality time together.”

“Ughh...Fine.” Jonghyun rolled his eyes. “But we have to go to a karaoke place soon, okay?”

“Yes, Jjong,” Onew placated, winking at Taemin. “Whatever you want.”

Meanwhile, in another hallway, Naeun and her three friends were having a similar conversation. 

“Rosé, no offense, but I’d really prefer if it was just me and Taemin today.”

“None taken. I just want to be there to make sure he’s treating you right.”

“Oh no,” Chaeyoung said. “She’s on Mom Friend mode.” She and Eunji laughed.

“Okay, what if next time, we’ll invite you guys?”

Naeun needed to get out of this conversation. Luckily, she saw Taemin approaching them.

Rosé huffed and crossed her arms. “Okay, but I swear if he even tries to-”

“Oh, look! Taemin’s here! I have to go! Bye guys!” 

Naeun rushed towards Taemin, clung to his arm, and led him away. When they were outside and away from the school grounds, they were finally more comfortable to talk to each other.

“So, do you still want to go to the karaoke place or did you change your mind?” Taemin asked.

“No, I think it’ll be fun!” Naeun said. Taemin had never seen her this energetic. _She’s so adorable when she’s excited._ “Let’s go!”

When they arrived at the karaoke place, they rented a small room - enough for just the two of them. Once they entered the room, Naeun immediately started choosing from the booklet of songs. Within minutes, she was already singing and dancing to NoNoNo by Apink.

Taemin was watching her, both amused and enamored by her. _How can a girl be so cute and so beautiful at the same time?_ When Naeun was tired from singing three songs consecutively, she sat beside him on the couch and rested. 

“Having fun?” Taemin said, subtly stretching his arm on the backrest around her.

“Yes, I really am.” Naeun said before drinking a glass of water. 

“I didn’t know you could sing.”

“It’s no big deal. I just participated in some church choirs before, but that’s it. Anyway, it’s your turn!”

Taemin grabbed the booklet and chose a song by a popular idol group. When the music started, he also started to dance to the beat. He was clearly an experienced dancer and singer.

_Noona neomu yeppeo...  
Micheo...  
Replay, replay, replay…_

When he finished, Naeun was clapping for him. He sat down beside her again and smiled.

“You really are the whole package, aren’t you?” Naeun said.

“What do you mean?” Taemin asked, feigning innocence.

Naeun rolled her eyes and smiled at him. “I think you know what I mean.”

“Humor me.”

“Okay, fine. You’re the whole package. You can dance. You can sing. You’re handsome…”

“Ooohhh,” Taemin smirked at her. “So you think I’m handsome now?”

“....Yes.”

Naeun buried her face in her hands and Taemin couldn’t stop smiling. He reached out, uncovered her face, and held her hands.

“Don’t worry,” Taemin said. “Marcy neomu yeppeo.”

~*~

On Thursday, they both decided to go to a night market that was being held in a park near their neighborhood. That evening, the place was filled with stalls for food, trinkets, and other paraphernalia. The two were like kids in a candy store. They went around eating free food samples whenever they could. They tried on silly hats from trinket shops. They even bought earrings for both of them. All the while, they held hands and didn’t let go. 

When they were done going around, they bought some freshly grilled burgers and settled down in one of the tables in the dining area. As they ate, Taemin fished out a small paper bag from his pocket. He handed it to Naeun.

“What’s this, Frank?” she said, still chewing on her burger.

“Open it,” he replied.

What was inside the paper bag was a loop of brown wooden beads with a wooden cross. It was a rosary bracelet. 

“It’s for you,” Taemin said. “I hope you’ll wear it.”

“Of course.” Naeun immediately slipped it through her left arm and let it rest on her wrist. “Thank you.”

~*~

Friday, the end of the week, came. Naeun wanted to arrange her books in her locker before going to class. When she opened it, a small yellow piece of paper fell out. She picked it up, unfolded it, and read it. 

_Marcy,_  
Meet me at the school yard during lunch. Don’t buy food yet! See you!  
\- Frank 

She smiled at the note, folded it, and put it in her pocket. After fixing the contents of her locker, she turned and saw her friends. Together, they headed to class. 

“Ooohhh…” teased Chaeyoung. “Someone’s in a good mood.”

“What’s today’s date?” said Eunji.

“Umm, lunch, I suppose.” Naeun said, shrugging and trying to hide her smile. “He told me to meet him at the school yard.”

“Have fun!” said Rosé. “We’ll buy you an extra brownie, just in case.”

Naeun nodded as a thank you as they entered the classroom. 

Hours felt like months while Naeun was impatiently waiting. When the lunch bell rang, she rushed out of the classroom. She practically ran through the hallways until she went outside through the back exit. The midday sun hit her as she tried to spot where Taemin was in the school yard. Finally, she saw him waving at her. She smiled and walked over to him.

The picnic blanket that Taemin had laid out was under the shadow of a big tree. He was waiting for her in a plaid button-down with a white shirt inside and ripped jeans. To his side was a picnic basket. 

“Hey, Marcy,” Taemin said, stretching his legs and propping himself up with his elbows. 

“Hi, Frank,” Naeun replied, smoothing out her jeans and white puff-sleeved top. “Have you been waiting long?”

“No, you came just in time.”

“So, a picnic?”

Taemin began unpacking the basket. He brought out some fruit, sandwiches, and juice boxes. “Tuna or ham and cheese?”

“Ham and cheese, please.” Naeun bit into the sandwich. 

“So… Why the picnic? It’s not that I don’t appreciate it. I’m just curious.”

“Umm…” Taemin frowned a bit. “There’s actually some bad news behind that.”

Naeun became concerned. “Why? What’s wrong?”

“I can’t walk you home today. I have dance practice this afternoon.”

“Oh, that’s okay. I understand.”

Taemin smiled and scooched over to sit beside her. He peeled and bit into a banana.

“This week has been really great, Taemin,” Naeun said. “ I never got a chance to thank you.”

“You’re welcome. This week has been awesome for me too…”

There was silence. They had been so comfortable during the past few days but for some reason, both of them were hesitant around each other again. Naeun gathered her courage and broke the quietude.

“Frank, can I tell you something?”

“Of course. What is it, Marcy?”

“It’s just… We’ve been spending so much time with each other lately... And I‘ve been really enjoying myself… and I guess what I’m trying to say is…” Naeun took a deep breath. “I really like you…”

Taemin smiled and gazed into Naeun’s eyes. “I really like you too…”

Taemin reached for her hand and interlaced his fingers with hers. They could finally look into each other’s eyes without faltering. At that moment, it was like there was no one in the world except the two of them.

“Taemin, can I ask you something?” Naeun had a tinge of concern in her eyes.

“What is it?”

“So if I like you… and you like me… What are we?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys! 
> 
> I hope you enjoyed more Frank and Marcy fluff! This chapter was fun for me to write as well. :D
> 
> Be warned though. Danger lurks ahead. ;)
> 
> Thank you for reading! I'll see you next week! :)


	11. Chapter 11

_Three years ago…_

_Okay, one last fold and I’m done._ I beamed excitedly at my work. _Jongmi’s going to love this._

Hi, I’m Lee Taemin. I’m thirteen and in my last grade of middle school. I know that I’m a bit young but I started dating this year. My girlfriend’s name is Jongmi and she’s _so_ beautiful. She’s the prettiest girl I’ve dated so far. I’ve always admired her secretly but one day, she just came up to me and asked me out. Am I lucky or what?

We’ve only been dating for three days but I found out that she loves origami. I looked for a pattern and made her an origami heart out of glittery pink paper. Sure, it involved me not paying attention in math class, but eh… 

When the bell rang, I grabbed my bag and walked as fast as I could to her locker. I stopped in my tracks when I saw her in another row with someone else - one of my best friends, Choi Minho. 

_What is she doing?_

I hid myself among a crowd of students so I can still watch them without being caught. I saw her talking to Minho while he just listened. To my surprise, she brought out a box of chocolates from her bag and offered it to him. 

I was slowly starting to get angry. I could feel the origami heart crumpling in my hand.

After she offered it to him, I saw Minho shake his head. He rejected her. She stood still for a few moments, slowly lowering the box to her side. Then, she ran away crying. I was careful not to let her see me. When I was sure that she was gone, I made my way to Minho.

“I saw that…” I said to him. “W-What happened?”

Minho frowned and sighed. “Nothing happened, Taemin. I promise. She just came up to me and confessed. Of course, I said no.”

“I see…” I now held the paper heart in my hands and crumpled it totally. I tried to hide my tears. “I really liked her, you know?”

I wiped my tears with my sleeve. I didn’t want to burst out crying in the middle of the hallway. “I just really thought _she_ would be different…”

Minho put his hand on my shoulder. “Hey, man. It’s going to be okay…”

“I guess I’m going to have to break up with her later, huh?”

“It’s up to you. But if you ask me, you deserve _way_ better.”

I nodded but stayed silent. Minho put his arms around my shoulder. “Come on, let’s go to the arcade with the guys after school. I’ll treat you.”

I threw the crumpled ball of glittery pink paper into a nearby trash bin. I looked up at him and forced a smile. “Okay… You’re a good friend, Ming.”

So that’s what happened. Now let’s go back to me. Like I said, I started dating this year. I figured out that girls really liked me, and that was great. But you know what I also figured out?

They liked my friends more. 

Let me tell you about my friends. There’s Onew, who’s like the smartest guy in our grade. There’s Jonghyun, the musician. There’s Key, the rich fashionista. Lastly, there’s Minho, the athlete. 

Then there’s me. I didn’t really stand out much, especially compared to the four. I never got mad at them for it. It wasn't _their_ fault that these things happened. 

Let me tell you about it. At first, I was really flattered because many girls started flirting with me. It really boosted my self-esteem. However, later on, they would ask me about one of my friends. At the time, I didn’t know the pattern, so I would introduce the girl to the one she asked about. Then, the following day, my friend would tell me that the girl I was dating started flirting with him. Case in point, that’s what just happened with Minho and Jongmi. Of course, my friends always turned them down. Bros before hoes.

I did get mad at _those_ girls though. After they flirted with my friends, they would go back to me and pretend like nothing happened. So what was I? A back-up plan? At first, I would just shrug it off and drift away from the girl. But that didn’t stop them. As it kept happening, I would get angrier and angrier. Was this all I was worth? A substitute boyfriend? Why wasn’t I enough? So you know what I did?

I got them back. I got them all back.

I changed my look. I wasn’t going to be that scrawny kid with the bowl cut anymore. I started approaching the girls instead of waiting for them to come to me. Not to toot my own horn, but I was pretty handsome, so that was an advantage. 

So that’s my story. If they treated me like I wasn’t enough, then I’m going to make them feel the same way. 

~*~

_Present Day_

_“Taemin, can I ask you something?” Naeun had a tinge of concern in her eyes._

_“What is it?”_

_“So if I like you… and you like me… What are we?”_

Taemin’s expression changed and he pulled his hand and gaze away from Naeun’s. He started remembering all the dates he had and how most of them ended horribly - mostly because of him. He looked sad, but with a twinge of anger too. He sighed.

“I don’t know…” Taemin said, flatly, looking out into the rest of the school yard. “What do you want to be?”

Naeun frowned. She deeply regretted asking him that. _Ugh, why did I do that? We’ve only been dating for one week! See, now I’ve scared him off!_

“Well… I love spending time with you… I really appreciate you sharing so much of your personal life with me…” Naeun was starting to lose her confidence. She put her sandwich down. Suddenly, she didn’t have an appetite anymore. “I just… I’m not pressuring you, but I just want to know where we stand…”

“I don’t think we should put a label on us...” he gestured to the two of them, “Whatever ‘us’ is.” Taemin’s answer was cold and he knew it. Deep inside he wanted to take it all back but the bitterness came out like a reflex. 

For the rest of the time, they ate in silence. Taemin was mad. He was mad at himself for being so harsh. But somehow, he couldn’t bear to look her in the eye and tell her how he really felt. Meanwhile, Naeun kept her eyes on her food. She was so embarrassed that she actually turned away from him. When she finished her juice box, she stood up to throw it away when Taemin stopped her. 

“Hey…” Taemin said, standing up. “Don’t worry about that. I’ll clean up.”

“Do you want some help?” 

“No, it’s okay. I’m good.”

“Okay… See you around, I guess…”

Taemin gave her a nod and a half-smile. He knew Naeun didn’t deserve this. She deserved better.

Naeun made her way back to the cafeteria. When she spotted her friends, she ran over to them and sat down. 

“Rosé,” Naeun said, tears starting to roll down her cheeks, “I think I’m gonna need that extra brownie…”

~*~

That afternoon, Taemin sat against the mirrored wall as the other students filed out of the dance practice room. He faced down with his head buried in his hands. He couldn’t get what happened during lunch out of his head. 

“Hey dude,” a male said. When Taemin looked up, it was Kai. Kai was his peer from the dance club. They bonded best during practice because they were both the lead dancers. When they first met, they would share techniques and critique each other. Later on, the two became closer and eventually, Kai became one of Taemin’s best friends.

“Hey,” Kai said, bending to Taemin’s level. “You okay?”

Taemin didn’t answer. He bent his legs and put his head between his knees. Kai sighed and sat beside him.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing…” Taemin sighed. “I’m just tired…”

“No, you’re not.” Kai said. “You never get tired after just one hour of practice.”

“Kai, please…”

“Nope, I’m not letting this one go…” 

Taemin stayed quiet.

“... It’s about Naeun, isn’t it?”

“Am I _that_ obvious?”

“Just a little bit,” Kai chuckled. “What happened?”

“I think… I think I ruined it…”

“Why? What did you do?”

“Nothing.”

“No, seriously, what did you do?”

“That’s just it. I did nothing. She confessed that she liked me and I said I liked her too. Then she asked what we were and I just… I basically brushed her off.”

“Wow…”

Taemin couldn’t even look Kai in the eye. He felt so ashamed of what he did.

“Can I ask why?” Kai said.

“Why what?”

“Why did you brush her off?”

“I don’t know. It’s hard for me to explain… It was kind of like a reflex. You know, like what happens with other girls?”

“But she’s not like other girls, is she?”

“No… Of course not.”

“How did she react?”

“I couldn’t look at her but I’m pretty sure she was hurt…”

“So, now what?”

“I really don’t know. I don’t know what to do at this point.”

“Maybe you need to take your mind off it first. Clear your head. Refresh yourself.”

“How?”

Kai stood up and spread his arms wide. “Well, we’re here now aren’t we? I know dancing always makes you feel better. Come on.” He offered his hand to Taemin’s. The latter took it and stood up.

Taemin stretched and looked at his reflection. 

“Alright. Let’s do this.”

~*~

Taemin bid goodbye to Kai when his phone buzzed in his pocket. 

_Hey, Taemin. The rest of the guys are sleeping over for the weekend. You coming?_ Key texted. 

Taemin pondered for a bit. Kai _did_ say that he needed to refresh himself. Maybe a weekend with his friends would help. Plus, that’ll give him a reason to avoid his neighbor. He was still thinking about his reply when he bumped into someone. He heard her trip and mutter angrily. 

“Oh my God, can’t you watch where you’re goi-” The girl stopped talking when she realized who it was. “Oh… Y-You’re Taemin. Hi…” 

Immediately, the girl’s face went red and she couldn’t look him straight in the eye.

“I’m sorry,” Taemin said, not even looking a bit regretful. _Ah look, here’s another one. Should I ask her out?_ An angry voice inside him berated him and told him not to, especially because of what happened with Naeun. _Well, I have a playboy reputation to keep up. That’s what everyone says anyway, right?_

“Hi…” Taemin said, helping her stand back up. “What’s your name?”

The girl had brown hair in low pigtails and full bangs. She had smooth fair skin and small pink lips. “U-Umm… It’s Gwiboon. My name is Gwiboon.”

“Gwiboon…” Taemin said, looking into her eyes and smirking. “Do you want to go out with me?”

“O-Oh.. You mean like, _now?_ ”

“Yeah,” Taemin said, keeping his wall of confidence.

As expected, the Gwiboon nodded excitedly and agreed to meet Taemin at the entrance after getting her belongings from her locker.

Taemin answered Key’s text. _Sure. I’ll catch up. I have something to take care of first._

A few minutes later, Gwiboon was back. “So where do you want to go?” He said. 

“Umm… maybe the mall? There’s a new cafe there that I want to try out.” Gwiboon said giddily.

“Alright, let’s go then.”

~*~

After a very boring date with Gwiboon, Taemin walked her to the bus stop and waited until she was able to catch a ride home. They had coffee in that new place she wanted to check out. They ordered the bestseller and sat in the corner. During that hour, Taemin learned two things - the coffee was dull, and his date even more so. Taemin would try to initiate conversations but all Gwiboon did was give a prompt answer. There was no give and take. She didn’t order anything else but the coffee too, so there was nothing to share with her. At the end of the date, Taemin wondered if she was really into him or if she just wanted the privilege of saying that she went out with _the_ Lee Taemin.

 _Hmm… She’s pretty…_ He thought as he made his way to his neighborhood. _Pretty but boring… I’ll give her two more days..._

Despite being tired from dance practice and the date, he walked home faster than usual. When he reached his front porch, he avoided looking across the street at all costs. He quickly entered his home, went up the stairs, and into his room. 

He heard his mom go up the stairs. “Hi, Taemin.” She saw him grabbing shirts and jeans and stuffing them in a duffel bag. 

Taemin turned around and greeted her back. “Oh, hi Mom… Key invited us to stay at his place for the weekend. Is it okay if I go?”

Mrs. Lee chuckled. “Well, I don’t think I can stop you.” She opened his closet and handed him a rolled piece of cloth. “Here… You’re going to need your sleeping bag.”

Taemin smiled and packed it in. He went to the bathroom to get his toiletries.

“Honey, is everything okay? You seem like you’re down in the dumps…”

Taemin sighed as he zipped his bag shut. “Don’t worry, Mom. I’m just tired…”

His mom gave him the look. He knew that she knew he was lying. 

_I know something’s wrong, Taemin._

Taemin sent her a look of his own. _Mom, I really don’t want to talk about it right now._

His mom relented and sighed. He finished packing and followed his mom down the stairs. Before he left, she gave him a hug and kissed his cheek. “I’m always here for you, okay? I love you.”

“I know, Mom. I love you too.”

Taemin forced a small smile and left. “Bye, Mom!” He waved goodbye. His mom returned the gesture and closed the door.

As Taemin was walking down their street, he did everything he could not to look at the other side of the road. It was dark when he arrived at Key’s house. He rang the doorbell and saw Key’s face on the buzzer. 

“Hey, it’s me.” Taemin said, talking to the small screen. 

The wooden gate began to slide, revealing a stone walkway to a modern mansion. The two-storey house had white walls accented with glass walls revealing the inside of the residence. From the walkway, he could already see the four boys sitting in the spacious living room. He waved to them and entered the front door. He was greeted by Key’s two poodles, Comme Des and Garcons. 

“Hello, guys…” he said, bending down and patting their heads. “Did you miss me?”

Key walked over and closed the door. The dogs followed their dad to the living room, where the rest of the boys were waiting. 

“Hey, Taemin,” Onew said. “We didn’t hear from you after lunch today. What happened?”

“I bet he had another date with Naeun…”

Taemin dropped his bags on the floor beside the couch. He leaned back, grabbed a pillow and buried his face in it.

“What’s wrong?” Minho said.

“Did something happen?” Onew asked.

Taemin sat up and faced them. “Yes…”

“Dirori!” Key said. “Did you break up with Naeun?”

“Not exactly…”

Everyone waited for him to keep talking.

“I mean,” he said. “You can’t exactly break up if you weren’t in a relationship in the first place.”

“That’s what you do with other girls…” Jonghyun said, stretching his hand to reach the bowl of chips on the coffee table.

Minho poked his leg from where he was sitting on the floor. “But she’s not like other girls, is she?” 

“No, she really isn’t.”

“So tell us what happened already.” said Key.

“Okay, fine.” Taemin sighed and started recounting what happened during lunch. “So basically, I blew her off.”

“Dude, why?” Jonghyun whined. “I thought you really liked her.”

“I did! I do! I don’t know! It’s just... I started feeling _that_ way again and I think I took it out on her…”

"Wait, did you apologize to her? Is that why it took you so long to get here?” Onew said. 

“No…” Taemin rubbed the back of his neck and shuffled his feet.

The four boys waited for his answer.

“I went out with another girl. Her name’s Gwiboon.”

Annoyed grumbles and moans filled the room. Even Key’s dogs, Comme Des and Garcons, whined on their daddy’s lap.

“Why would you do that?” Minho said.

“Does this mean you’re _totally_ ending things with Naeun?” Jonghyun asked with wide eyes.

“I don’t know, okay?” Taemin said. “It’s just…. Life goes on! People move on with their lives and I might as well live up to the image that people make for me.”

“Does Naeun know? Did she say anything?” Onew asked.

“No, I don’t think she knows.”

“She will, eventually. If she’s smart, she’ll stay away from you.” Key retorted snarkily. 

“Gee, thanks Key.” Taemin glared at his friend.

“So what are you going to do now?” Minho asked.

“....I really don’t know.”

“Look,” Jonghyun said, propping himself up from laying down on his belly on one of the sofas. “Why don’t you just apologize to Naeun?”

“Guys, I don’t think I can.”

“What do you mean you can’t? I’m sure she’ll understand.”

“No… You don’t get it guys. When she asked me what we were, I began thinking about my past relationships - if you can even call them that… I just... I can’t do that to her.”

Minho spoke up. “What? So you think dating another girl is the better solution?”

Taemin buried his face in his hands. The whole room was silent. 

“I know what happens to the girls I date. I hear the whispers and snarky comments from the other girls. They call my dates bitches and sluts. Some people come up with rumors not just about me and her, but also you guys. _I’m_ used to that and I know you guys are too, but _she_ isn’t. I just… I can’t put her through that.”

“But that’s not under your control,” Onew said, putting his arm on Taemin’s shoulder.

“That’s not true. I’ll just avoid her to save her from that mess. She deserves better than that. She deserves better than me.”

“Ya,” Key said “Do you want my honest opinion?”

Taemin smirked and said, “Well, you’re going to tell us anyway so just go.”

“I think you should fix things with Naeun. I mean, come on. Listen to yourself. You’d rather date someone else when it’s obvious that you’re _way_ into Naeun? You’d rather leave her than work on your _own_ faults? Don’t say that she deserves a better guy. Say that she deserves a better _you_.”

“Yeah, dude.” Minho added. “Isn’t she worth it?”

Taemin didn’t answer. The whole room was quiet save for the crunching of chips and sound of fizzing soda. 

“I don’t know, guys. I think I need to clear my head for a while,” he said, even more confused and tired. “Can I take a shower?”

“Yeah, sure. Bathroom is upstairs, the second door on the right.”

“Thanks.” With that, Taemin headed upstairs with his towel and a change of clothes.

When they heard the bathroom door shut, the four boys downstairs continued their conversation.

“What are we going to do now?” Jonghyun asked.

“I don’t think there’s much we can do.” Key said. “He played the Playboy Taemin Card again, so that’s it.”

“I just feel really bad for Naeun,” Minho said. “She seems to really like him.”

“And it’s obvious that Taemin really likes her too.” Jonghyun added.

Onew ran his hand through his hair. “Well, Taemin has already made up his mind. Besides, I don’t think it’s time for us to interfere yet. He can do this. He’s a big boy.”

Jonghyun took a sip from his soda. “I have a bad feeling about this...”

Key sighed and shook his head. “Don’t we all?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys!
> 
> I hope you enjoyed this chapter! I was trying to find a good way to go about providing context to Taemin's playboy behavior. I hope you were satisfied with that flashback. Also, we all know how beautiful Jongmi really is... ;)
> 
> Thank you for reading! I'll see you next week! :)


	12. Chapter 12

_“Rosé,” Naeun said, tears starting to roll down her cheeks, “I think I’m gonna need that extra brownie…”_

Naeun dropped her bag on the table and sat down. She frantically tried to wipe away her tears but they just kept flowing. Chaeyoung scooted closer and rubbed her friend’s back. 

“Hey…” she said. “What’s wrong?”

Eunji scoured her bag for some tissues. She handed a pack to Naeun to help her dry her cheeks. Rosé slid the brownie to Naeun and held her hand. 

“Okay, calm down first. Breathe… Inhale… Exhale…”

When Naeun regained her composure, she wiped her cheeks and eyes with tissues and sighed, following Rosé’s words.

“Do you want to talk about it?” Eunji said. 

“I-Is that okay?” Naeun answered.

“Of course it is, girl.” Rosé said, giving her friend’s hand a gentle squeeze.

Naeun became quiet and sighed. The other three girls shared a look.

“....Is it Taemin?” Chaeyoung asked. Naeun nodded.

“What did he do? Did he break up with you?”

Naeun hesitated. “W-Well, you can’t exactly break something you never had…”

“What do you mean?”

“It’s my fault, really.”

“I’m sure that’s not true. What did he say?”

“Well, I asked him what we, as in me and him, were. Then, he suddenly became cold. He couldn’t even look at me…”

“Then what happened?”

“He… He said that he doesn’t think we should put a label on us.”

Eunji rolled her eyes and huffed. “That jerk…”

“What did you say?” Rosé continued.

“Nothing… I mean, what else can I say? I can’t force him to be my boyfriend if he doesn’t want to be.”

“Do you want to be his girlfriend?”

Naeun paused for a moment to think. _Do I really want to be his girlfriend? Yeah… I think I do._

“Yes… I just… I don’t know…”

She buried her face in her hands and started crying again.

“I just…” she said between sobs. “I just thought we had something special… Turns out we don’t… I was just too stupid to think he would treat me differently from the other girls…”

“No…” Eunji said. “Sweetie, it’s not your fault.”

“Yeah,” Rosé added. “He doesn’t deserve you.”

“I’m sorry. I must sound so pathetic right now. I mean, you guys warned me…”

“No, no,” Chaeyoung said, unwrapping the brownie for her. “Don’t worry about that. Here, eat your brownie. It’ll help.”

The girls just sat in silence while Naeun ate her snack. As if on cue, Taemin passed by carrying a picnic basket. Naeun saw him and shrunk in her seat. He gave them an uncaring look and turned away, but not before catching Eunji flip him off.

~*~

For the rest of the day, Naeun tried to focus on her lessons. Though, in the back of her mind, that scene kept replaying. 

_“I don’t think we should put a label on us...Whatever ‘us’ is.”_

_I should have listened to my friends. I should have just stayed away. I didn’t have to say yes to him… I just thought we were at least still friends… I guess not…_

Seconds felt like hours and minutes felt like years. When the dismissal bell finally rang, she sighed heavily and packed her bag. When she returned to her locker, she saw her three friends waiting for her.

“Hi guys…” she said. “What’s up?” Naeun opened her locker and sorted her books. 

“You need some retail therapy,” Chaeyoung said.

“What?”

“We’re going to the mall.”

“But-”

“No buts! Come on!”

The three girls practically carried Naeun outside and onto the parking lot. Eunji dug through her pockets for the key and unlocked her car.

“Wow, you have a car?” Naeun said. “That’s so cool! I thought everybody here just walked to school or rode the bus.”

Eunji motioned for her to get inside. “Well, I live on the far side of town so it’s more for practicality than street cred… Although the cool points don’t hurt.” She winked at Naeun through her rear view mirror. 

Rosé chanted from the passenger seat. “Let’s go! Let’s go! Let’s go!” 

~*~

After about an hour, Naeun found herself sipping on some bubble tea while the four of them shared a big plate of spicy popcorn chicken. 

“So what are we going to do next?” said Chaeyoung, grabbing a piece of chicken with her chopsticks.

“Let’s ask Naeun,” Eunji replied, turning to Naeun. “What do you want to do?”

Taken aback, Naeun stopped sipping on her drink. “Why me?”

“Because we’re taking care of you,” Rosé answered.

“Look guys, it’s okay. You didn’t have to go through all this trouble just for-”

Chaeyoung placed a finger on Naeun’s lips. “Nope, nope, nope. Seriously, it’s okay.”

“Plus, I never turn down a chance to go to the mall,” Eunji said. 

“Umm… Okay…” Naeun thought. “Maybe… We can watch a movie?”

“Okay. There’s nothing new though so they’re replaying old ones.”

Rosé checked the schedule on her phone. “Oh, they’re showing Frozen 2 again! Let’s watch that!”

Chaeyoung and Eunji groaned. “Rosé, we’ve seen that movie twice! In this same mall! In the same theater!”

“If you don’t agree, I swear to God, I’m going to stand on this chair and sing ‘Into the Unknown’ in five seconds! 5….”

Chaeyoung and Eunji pleadingly looked at Naeun. 

“4…”

Naeun shrugged and chuckled. “I’m fine with it…” 

“3…”

Chaeyoung looked at Eunji. “Do something!”

“2…”

Eunji gave up. “You know what? She’s probably going to do it anyway so just...yeah.”

“1!”

Rosé stood on her chair and belted out the chorus. “Into the unknooooown! Into the unknOOOOwn! Into the unknOOOOOoooOOOOWN!”

At this point, everybody was looking at their table - at Rosé specifically. When some people started clapping, everybody started to do the same. Rosé bowed proudly and sat back down. When she sat properly again, she saw Eunji and Chaeyoung covering their faces in embarrassment while Naeun was gently clapping and giggling. 

“See?” Rosé smirked proudly. “I made her laugh. Ten points to Rosé!”

~*~

_Two hours later…_

The four girls exited the theater and threw their cups and popcorn boxes into the nearest trash bin. Eunji stretched her arms and yawned.

“That was a great nap!” she said, proudly.

“Yeah, I can tell,” Chaeyoung said, giving her the side-eye. “I had to shake you a couple of times to stop you from snoring.”

Rosé said, “What about you? You were texting the whole time! You guys are lucky there weren’t a lot of people in the theater.”

“Well, maybe because people don’t usually watch it in theaters _three_ times!” Eunji said, sticking her tongue out. 

Naeun smiled and quietly laughed as she watched the three bicker like little kids. She blushed Chaeyoung noticed her staring.

“What is it?” Chaeyoung said.

Naeun just shrugged. “It’s nothing. I just find it cute when you guys bicker like that. It’s nice seeing how close you are.” 

Chaeyoung noticed a glint of sadness in Naeun’s eyes. “Is it because you’ve moved around a lot?” Naeun nodded.

Eunji walked over to her and put her arm around Naeun’s shoulders. “Well, you’ve got us now and we’re the best! Right, girls?”

“Yeah!” They cheered and high-fived, including Naeun. 

“So what’s next?” Chaeyoung asked Naeun.

“I don’t know. I mean, you know this mall better than I do so I’ll let you guys take the lead.”

Eunji raised her hand and bounced excitedly. “I know! I know! She still needs retail therapy! Let’s shop for some new school outfits!”

Chaeyoung and Rosé nodded in agreement.

“Oh, but I don’t think I have enough money,” Naeun said.

“Don’t worry. We know this shop where you can get good deals.”

Naeun shrugged and smiled. “Okay, lead the way!”

They walked together and reached the clothing section of the mall. They entered a shop and the three broke up and started looking through different sections of the shop. Rosé was looking through the racks of clothing, Chaeyoung was looking at the shoes, and Eunji was looking a the accessories

“Are you looking for something in particular, Miss?” the saleslady approached Naeun with a polite smile.

“Umm….”

“Yes!” Eunji said. “We’re looking for a nice outfit for her!” She pointed at Naeun.

“Me? What? I-”

“She needs an outfit for school.” Eunji continued. “Something simple but chic.”

“Guys, I don’t need a new outfit.” Naeun said, a bit confused.

“Yeah, you do.” Chaeyoung spoke up. “You’re going to walk into school on Monday, looking fine as hell and Taemin is going to see you and he’s going to regret that he missed out on a girl like you!”

Naeun pondered on this. _Well, I am still mad at him… and there’s no harm in buying new clothes…_ She shrugged and smiled. 

“Okay, let’s do this then!”

She started scouring through the racks along with the girls. A little later, the saleslady came back.

“What about this, Ma’am?” She held up the outfit on a clothes hanger. It was a matching crop top and skirt set. The set was a soft yellow with red flowers printed here and there. The crop top was sleeveless with a round neckline. The skater skirt was high-waisted and ended at mid-thigh. 

“Wow…” Rosé said, her eyes sparkling at the clothes. “Naeun, you should try it on! It’ll look so good on you!”

“I-I don’t know…” she answered, getting shy again. “Isn’t it too...sexy?”

“No! It’s perfect!” said Eunji. 

The three girls kept trying to convince Naeun when they suddenly stopped and stared outside the shop. Their eyes were so wide and they were so shocked that Naeun was taken aback.

“What? What’s wrong?” She turned around to see what they were looking at.

The three girls tried to stop her. 

“No!”  
“Naeun!”  
“Wait!”

And there he was. It was none other than Lee Taemin, walking with his arm around another girl. Naeun watched as they walked past the shop, careful not to let him see her. _Already with another one, huh? He’s just like what they said._ She felt the tears coming again but this time, she held them back. She wasn’t going to let him ruin her day even more. _Ugh, screw it!_

Naeun turned back to her friends “Okay, I’ll try it on.” She addressed the saleslady. “Ma’am, do you have any shoes that go with this?”

~*~

By the time Eunji arrived at Naeun’s house, it was already dark. 

“Thank you so much for today, girls,” Naeun said. “It really meant a lot to me.”

“No need to say thank you,” Chaeyoung said, hugging Naeun. “What are friends for?”

“I’m sorry but I can’t exactly introduce you to my mom now. I kind of want to run inside. I don’t want to…” Naeun looked at her neighbor’s house. “...Encounter anyone.”

The three girls nodded. “It’s alright,” Rosé said. “There’s always a next time.”

“Alright.” Naeun said, opening the car door. “Bye, guys! See you on Monday!”

As the girls drove off, Naeun quickly ran to her front door and unlocked it. 

“Hi, mom!” Naeun greeted her mother. 

“Hi, dear,” Mrs. Son replied. “How was your day?”

Naeun didn’t know what to answer. “It was… eventful.”

“Oh really?” Her mom looked at the shopping bags she was carrying. “Did you have fun at the mall?”

“Yes, I did.” She put down her bags on the sofa and sat beside her mom. She leaned her head on her shoulder. Her tears threatened to flow again, considering how vulnerable she let herself feel around her mother. She held them back. She didn’t want her to know what had happened, especially since Taemin was involved.

“I’d love to meet your friends some time.”

“Yeah. I’m sorry,” she answered. “Eunji was in a hurry.” Naeun hated lying but she couldn’t tell her why she had to rush inside the house.

“It’s alright. You can have them over if you want. I can bake some cupcakes.”

“Maybe…”

Naeun sat up and gathered her belongings. “I think I’ll turn in early, Mom.”

“Alright. Good night, sweetheart.”

Naeun went up to her room and unpacked the shopping bags. She put her new outfit on a clothes hanger and hung it behind her door. With that, she got ready for bed and went to sleep. She had a long day after all.

That weekend, she locked herself up in her room. Whenever her mom asked, she said she had a lot of homework to do. This wasn’t exactly a lie. She did some advanced reading and some practice exercises. She also realized that her project with Minho was due soon.

When she wasn’t eating or doing homework, she was in bed, jamming out to sad songs. It wasn’t Monday yet and she was alone so she figured she could use this time to let all the sadness and anger out of her system. She jumped on her bed, headbanged, and lip synced along to her playlist. 

_Congratulations, glad you're doing great, woah  
Congratulations, how are you okay, woah_

She would sing out loud if her mother weren’t there to hear her.

_I hate that you're happy  
I hope that you can't sleep  
Just knowing that I could be with somebody new  
That I'd be just like you_

By Sunday night, she was calm and collected. Her homework was done. Her books were already packed in her bag. Most importantly, her revenge outfit was ready. 

_Just you wait, Lee Taemin. You’re going to regret ever dumping me…_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys!
> 
> I hope you enjoyed this chapter! For some reason, it took me longer than usual to write this one. I figured it was probably because I know the SHINee boys better so it's easier to write about them. Anyway, here are some of my thoughts about this chapter:
> 
> 1\. I loved Frozen 2. I liked the first one but man, the sequel is just amazing. If you haven't seen it, please watch it. :)  
> 2\. I watched The Greatest Showman in theaters three times so it's totally normal. XD  
> 3\. The song near the end of the chapter is Congratulations by Day6. Check them out. They're SUPER good. :)  
> 4\. Most importantly, I hope you understand the timing of the events that occurred. Let me explain to be sure. Remember in the last chapter when Taemin and Gwiboon went on a date to the mall? Coincidentally, that was when Naeun and the girls saw him. That's why Naeun thought that Taemin had already moved on to another girl. There's going to be a lot more of these timing-related events so please brace yourselves. 
> 
> Thank you so much for reading! I'll see you next week! :)


	13. Chapter 13

_Monday…_

Mrs. Son stopped the car at the side of the road in front of the school to drop off her daughter. Naeun was wearing the outfit that she and her friends bought at the mall. On top of that, she styled her hair in soft waves and wore make-up - just enough to enhance her features but not so much that it was too obvious. 

“You look very nice today, Naeun.” Her mom said. “Is it for someone special?”

Naeun smirked. “Yes. I guess you can say that. Thanks for dropping me off, Mom,” she said, giving her mother a peck on the cheek.” 

“Will you come straight home after school?”

“I’m not sure. I have to work on this project with my partner. I’ll text you.”

“Okay, hun. Have a great day!”

With a bright smile, Naeun exited the car and walked to the entrance of the school. “Oh believe me,” she said to herself. “I plan to…”

~*~

When Naeun entered the double doors, she set her confidence to the highest level. She paused to make sure everyone was looking before strutting like a model on a runway across the atrium. Everybody was looking at her and making way for her to pass and for once in her life, she loved the attention. From her peripheral view, she saw Gwiboon walk away from Taemin and stop at the sight of her. Naeun gave her a quick once-over before glaring and smirking at Taemin. She didn’t even stop to see what his reaction was. As she walked to her locker, she also saw Taemin’s friends looking her way. This time, she gave them a cheerful wave. _Why wouldn’t I? They didn’t do anything wrong._ By the time she arrived at her locker, her friends were waiting for her with triumphant grins on their faces.

“Giiiiiirl,” Chaeyoung said, leaning on her locker and looking at Naeun up and down. “You look stunning! I mean when we saw you try it on at the store, it was great. But this? This is just…awesome.”

Rosé hugged Naeun but was careful enough not to mess up her hair and make-up. “Naeun, you look amazing. I didn’t know I was friends with a _model!_ Plus the way you strutted your stuff all the way, here? Ugh, perfection!”

“Hello?” Eunji said. “Aren’t we forgetting the most important part? Did you see Taemin? Did you see that dumbstruck look on that jerk’s face? OH, and the way you snubbed Gwiboon? Genius!”

Naeun smiled and high-fived her friends. “I don’t usually like revenge but I have to admit, this feels _so_ great!”

Then all at once, her friends’ smiles turned into angry frowns. 

“What?” Naeun said. “What is it?”

“H-Hey, Naeun…”

Naeun whirled around to see Taemin looking anxious and shuffling his feet. 

“Oh,” Naeun said indifferently. “It’s you.”

She turned to face her friends. “Girls, why don’t you go ahead? I’ll catch up.” The three did as they were told after giving Taemin one last glare.

“What is it?” Naeun said.

“I was just wondering if we could talk…” the boy replied.

“About what?” Naeun replied, not even looking at him as she grabbed the books she needed for the next period.

“You know… About _us_ …” Taemin said, with a sad look in his eyes.

Naeun tried her hardest to stay cold. Deep inside, she knew she still had feelings for him, but her self-worth was more important right now.

“Hmm…” Naeun answered, closing her locker. “I’ve got a lot going on right now so I’ll see if I can fit you in my schedule. I’ll text you.” Of course, this wasn’t true, but she had to make up an excuse. _I’m just not ready to face you again, Taemin, especially after what you did._

At that moment, the bell rang and gave Naeun the opening to leave. Seconds after, Gwiboon was back. 

“Hi, Taemin,” she said. “I was hoping we can walk to homeroom toge-” The girl looked startled at the sight of Naeun.

“Anyway,” Naeun continued. “It looks like you’re....” Naeun looked at Gwiboon nonchalantly. The latter clung onto Taemin’s arm and avoided Naeun’s stare. “....Busy.” _Sorry, girl._ Naeun thought. Poor Gwiboon was a casualty in the war between her and Taemin.

Naeun closed her locker and turned her back to leave. 

“O-Okay! I’ll see you!” Taemin called after her. Naeun didn’t even look back as she gestured goodbye to the boy. 

“Hey, Gwiboon?” Taemin said. “I’ll meet you at the classroom, okay? I just forgot something in my locker.” The girl was finally able to breathe without Naeun around. She nodded and left Taemin standing in the hallway. 

Then, Taemin noticed his four friends standing next to him as he watched Naeun walk away. He had a feeling that they saw the whole thing. Judging by their reactions, he was right. Minho let out a low whistle while Onew shook his head slowly and Key smirked. 

Jonghyun rested his elbow on Taemin’s shoulder. “Maaan…” he said, chuckling a little bit. “You are _so screwed._ ”

~*~

As Literature class was about to end, Ms. Song made an announcement. “Alright, class. Before you go, I would like to remind you that your projects are due on Friday. _But_ , I’ve decided to extend the deadline to next week.”

Immediately, the whole class cheered as if they weren’t dozing off during the whole period. 

“Wait!” Ms. Song continued. “There’s a catch.” The entire class groaned. “I don’t want you to hand in just simple typewritten reports, especially since you’re working in pairs. I want you to add something special. Be creative about it! For example, you can make a poster, a collage, or maybe add a short skit. You’ll be presenting it in class on Monday, next week.”

With that, the bell rang, Ms. Song bid goodbye and the students started leaving.

“Naeun, we’ll see you at lunch!” Rosé said as she and Chaeyoung hurried to their next class.

As Naeun waved goodbye, she felt a familiar presence beside her. “Hey, Ming.”

“Hey, Naeun.” He said. Despite her fight with Taemin, she and Minho continued their routine of walking to their next classes together. “Can I say something? Like, as a friend?”

“What is it?”

“I just want to say that you look really great today…” Minho said. He cleared his throat and looked away.

Naeun smiled proudly. “Thank you. I appreciate that.”

“You don’t have to answer but, is all of this... “ He gestured to all of her. “For Taemin?”

Naeun looked at him with feigned innocence. “Why, whatever do you mean?”

Minho laughed. “Looks like Taemin has finally met his match.”

Naeun laughed at that. Even though she was still hurt about what Taemin did, somehow Minho made her feel lighter.

“Okay, enough Taemin talk,” she said. “What are we going to do about the project?”

“I actually don’t know,” Minho said. They were nearing Naeun’s next class. “We can talk about it later during lunch if you want.”

“I think it’ll be too noisy. Are you doing anything after school? Maybe we can meet at the library?”

“Sure! See you then!”

~*~

_That afternoon..._

_Minho,_ Naeun texted. _I’m here at the library. Where are you?_

Naeun’s phone buzzed. _Look up!_ Minho answered.

Naeun did as she was told and saw Minho waving at her from a corner table on the mezzanine. Naeun made her way up the stairs and sat across her partner.

“So,” Minho said. “Do you have anything in mind?”

“I actually do.”

“Okay, shoot.”

“I was thinking that maybe you can dress up as The Little Prince and do a monologue about the part with the roses.” Naeun said, twirling a pencil around her hair. “I can be the narrator.”

“Me?” Minho said with wide eyes and his finger pointed at himself. “You want _me_ to act? Yeah, I don’t think I can do that..”

“Personally, I think you can do a good job but if you don’t want to, then it’s okay,” Naeun shrugged. “Do you have any ideas?”

“I was actually thinking about making a drawing.” 

“Oh, you can draw?”

“No,” Minho grinned. “But I know _you_ can.”

Naeun raised her eyebrow at him. “What?”

“Naeun, I’ve seen your ‘doodles’ in class. They’re better than you think. Let me borrow your notebook.” She handed it to him. He flipped through the pages until he found one with drawings of The Little Prince, a fox, and a rose. “See?” Minho said. “These look better than you think.”

“But they’re so messy and rough around the edges,” Naeun said. “They aren’t even colored properly. Are you sure about this?”

Minho thought for a while. “Okay, I’ve got it.”

Naeun waited for him to continue. 

“I think all you need are the right materials. I can ask Key to help you. He’s good with these artsy things.”

“I don’t want to bother him though,” Naeun said.

“Don’t worry. I’ll take care of it.”

“Okay then. If _I_ do the drawing, then _you_ do the monologue. Fair?” 

Naeun held out her hand. Minho sighed and smiled. He took her hand and shook it. “Fair.”

“Okay, good. Now let’s work on the rough draft of the drawing.”

For the first few minutes, Minho watched as Naeun did the draft. When he got bored, he started texting. Once the vibrating from his phone stopped, he started folding his notebook pages into tiny airplanes and throwing them towards Naeun. At first, Naeun just gave him confused glances, but later on, she started waving her hand to block the planes.

“Oh my God!” she half-whispering and half-giggling. “Are you like five or something?”

“No, I’m sixteen and a half, thank you very much.” Minho answered as he tried to stifle his giggles and throw more planes at her.

Their ruckus caught the librarian’s attention and they received a very loud and reprimanding “SSSHHH!” from her. With that, Naeun stuck her tongue out at Minho and continued drawing. 

~*~

Taemin had been feeling uneasy the whole day and it started when Naeun walked through the doors of the school. The moment she entered, he couldn’t keep his eyes off her. He didn’t know if it was the clothes or the shoes or the hair. _It was just...everything… She looked so beautiful. Well, she always does… But she was glowing today… Like she was really happy…_ He felt a pinch at his heart thinking that. He thought about the way she brushed him off that morning. _She was so cold… It’s like she didn’t care about me at all… Serves me right…_

He didn’t leave right after his last class because he was still hoping that Naeun would take some time to talk to him. He kept checking his phone for texts but he never got anything. He reached out in the group chat. _Hi guys,_ he said. _Do any of you know where Naeun is?_

Taemin saw _Minho is typing..._ and he bounced in anticipation. _Yeah, she’s with me._ Taemin furrowed his brows and texted back.

_???_

_We’re working on our Lit project in the library._

Taemin didn’t answer. He made his way to the library. When he entered, he looked around to find Minho and Naeun. He heard stifled laughter and saw them in a corner table. Minho was throwing paper airplanes at Naeun while she batted them away.

Taemin raised his eyebrow with doubt then quickly made his way out of the library. 

_Working on our Lit project, huh?_ He thought angrily. _Yeah, right._

~*~

_Tuesday…_

“Actually…” Key said as he examined Naeun’s draft. “It isn’t that bad.”

“So… Can you help me with it?” Naeun said, sitting on a nearby stool in front of an easel. 

Upon Minho’s advice, Naeun consulted with Key about her drawing for their Lit project. “What do you need help with?”

“Umm…Like, what medium should I use?”

“Are you skilled in using watercolors?”

Naeun thought for a bit and shrugged. “I haven’t used anything but colored pencils but I can always try.”

“Hold on…” Key said, looking through shelves of paper. “You’ll need these.” He handed her a pad, a watercolor set, and some brushes. “You can work on that table.” 

Naeun nodded and started sketching on the pad. 

“Do you mind if I make small talk or are you the type who needs to work in radio silence?” Key said.

“No, go ahead.”

Key was busy working on his own project. He had a big sketchpad propped up on an easel while he drew with charcoal. “Well, first of all, I have to say….”

“Mmhm?”

“You certainly turned heads yesterday.”

“I’ll take that as a compliment.”

“Don’t worry. It is. He certainly got the message...”

“You know?”

Key rolled his eyes and smiled. “Of course I know, honey. You can bet all his friends do too.”

“I don’t know whether to feel embarrassed or proud.”

“I’d be more on the proud side. He had it coming.”

“You think so?”

“Uh-huh. It’s about time he learned his lesson.”

“You know he wants to talk to me…”

“What did you say?”

“I said I’d text him when I was available.”

“And?”

“And I haven’t texted him since…”

“I see…” Key tilted his head and examined his work. Then he started drawing again. “Do you still have feelings for him?”

“Well, yes but I-” Naeun stopped and looked at him. “How did _you_ know I had feelings for him?

“Diroriii! I’m right, aren’t I?”

He looked at her with his eyebrow raised. She met his stare. “...Yes.”

Key sighed and went back to drawing. “I’m not exactly some wise old hen, but I believe you guys can work it out… That is, if you both really want to…”

“So you think I should talk to him already?”

“Hmm… I’d give it one more day. Make him work for it.” Key smirked and winked at her.

~*~

Taemin was restless. It had been a day since Naeun told him she would text him and he still got nothing. _She said she had a lot going on. She said she would “try to fit me in her schedule.” Then I saw her with Minho at the library. It didn’t look like they were working, but I trust Minho. He wouldn’t lie to me, right?_

A voice interrupted his thoughts. “Hey, Taemin? Are you okay?”

Gwiboon gave him a concerned look. “You’ve been quiet and distant the whole day. Is something wrong?”

Taemin shifted his concentration. He turned to face Gwiboon with a sad expression. “Gwiboon… I don’t think this is going to work out…”

Gwiboon let out a laugh. “Yup, I kind of knew that was coming.”

“I’m really sorry.” Taemin said.

“It’s okay.” Gwiboon gathered her belongings. “Whoever she is, she’s a lucky girl…”

Taemin was taken aback. “W-What did you say?” But the girl was already walking away. 

“See you around, Taemin!”

This was one of the rare times when the girl he broke up with actually took it well. He inhaled deeply and lay down on the bench. _Whoever she is, she’s a lucky girl…_ Gwiboon’s words repeated over and over in his head. _I really am that obvious, aren’t I?_

He closed his eyes for a bit, trying to refresh himself. However, all he could think about was Naeun - Naeun with the flower in her hair, Naeun singing karaoke, Naeun wearing the rosary bracelet, and Naeun walking away from him yesterday. _Have I lost her for good?_

Taemin decided he couldn’t be alone. He needed a distraction. He knew Minho had soccer practice today so he would be busy. Jonghyun already went home. Onew would be busy with student council work again. _I guess I’ll go with Key…_

He made his way inside the building and headed to the arts and crafts room. He was about to enter the door when he saw the very girl he had been thinking about, laughing with one of his best friends. He watched them for a few more seconds before walking away heatedly.

_First, it was Minho. Now, Key? What the hell is going on?_

~*~

_Wednesday…_

The four girls were eating lunch at their usual table. Instead of eating what was on the daily menu, Rosé opted for a salad.

“Hey, is something wrong?” Eunji said. 

“What?” Rosé said. 

“You don’t really skip the daily menu unless something’s bugging you. What’s up?”

Rosé sighed and pushed her food away. “It’s the showcase. I’m performing and I’m getting worried about it.”

“Why?” Chaeyoung said. “You always do great every year.”

“Yeah, but still,” Rosé continued. “I just want to make sure I can deliver a good performance. Will you guys help me?”

Naeun chimed in. “Sure, but what can we do exactly?”

“Can you come with me to Music Club today after class and tell me what you think?”

“Oooh, bad timing for me,” Eunji said regretfully. “I have errands to do for my parents.”

“I can’t either, girl. I’m sorry,” Chaeyoung said. “I agreed to meet up with some middle school friends and I can’t cancel on them last minute.”

“Oh…” Rosé said. “That’s okay-”

“Hey, don’t worry,” Naeun interrupted. She patted her friend’s hand. “I’ll come along.”

Rosé’s expression brightened. “You will? That’s great!”

“Yup! It’ll be fun!” Naeun said. “Now go get some real food before the daily special runs out.”

~*~

Naeun made sure to knock first before entering the music room. When she opened the door, she not only saw Rosé, but Jonghyun too.

“Oh, Jonghyun,” Naeun said. “I didn’t know you’d be here too.”

“Hello to you as well,” Jonghyun said.

“Oh,” Naeun shook her head and winced. “I’m sorry. That was rude. I just thought Rosé needed help with her performance.”

“Yup! That’s why I’m here!”

“Yeah,” Rosé said, resting her hands on the guitar on her lap. “He’s kind of like my music coach, to be honest.”

“Come.” Jonghyun patted a stool in between them. “Sit with us.”

Naeun walked over to them and sat down. “So…” she said. “Ready to show us what you’ve got?”

“Okay then.” Rosé took a deep breath and started strumming her guitar. “This song is called ‘Stay’ and it goes a little something like this...”

_This sad melody resembles you  
It makes me cry eh eh  
Your scent is a sweet felony  
I hate you so much but i love you_

As Rosé’s sweet voice and the sound of her guitar, Naeun felt herself getting immersed in the lyrics. She just closed her eyes and concentrated on the song.

_Before the dark night traps me in  
Don’t leave me  
Do you still love me? If you feel the same  
Don’t leave today  
Don’t ask why it has to be you  
Just stay with me_

When Rosé sang the last note, Naeun opened her eyes and smiled. She and Jonghyun started clapping softly. 

“So…” she looked up, biting her lip nervously. “What do you think?”

“That was great!” Naeun said.

“See?” Jonghyun added. “You have nothing to be nervous about!”

“Are you sure? I mean, I have another option and I kind of want to run it by you guys too.”

“Okay, let’s hear it.”

Rosé reached for her bag and rummaged through it. “Oh man, I think I forgot my sheet music in my locker.” She set her guitar on a nearby stand. “I’ll be right back. I’ll just go get them.” Rosé rushed to the door, leaving Naeun and Jonghyun alone.

“So…” Naeun said, trying to break the ice. “Are you joining the showcase too?”

“I guess you could say that,” he replied. “I’m playing during the intermission.”

“Oh, why aren’t you competing?”

“Cuz I’m just _too good_ …” Jonghyun smirked, to which Naeun rolled her eyes and laughed.

“I’m not kidding! I know it sounds conceited but I’m telling the truth!” Jonghyun said, laughing with her.

“Okay, fine. Since you’re so great, let’s hear you play then.”

Jonghyun moved to the keyboard. He started playing a jazzy tune. “This song is called ‘Beautiful Tonight.’”

_It’s late, let’s go home now  
It’s another late night and I’m taking you home  
The moon is big, it’s a full moon  
If I let you go like this, I won’t be able to sleep for a while_

Naeun gently swayed and smiled while she watched Jonghyun perform. He wasn’t lying. He really was that good.

_Oh Beautiful Tonight,  
Oh Say Oh Say, Oh Say Oh Say_

“At this point, I’ll probably engage the audience and maybe do something with my kazoo.” Jonghyun said, removing his hands from the keyboard.”

“How?”

“Well, during the showcase, I don’t really plan on playing the piano myself. Someone will play it for me while I sing.”

“A kazoo though?”

“Yep!” He brought out the silver instrument from his pocket and gave it a little toot. “This thing is really interesting if you know how to use it.”

Naeun smiled. “Did you write that song?”

Jonghyun nodded proudly. 

“It’s really good.” Naeun clapped her hands in submission. “I admit it. You were right. You’re really _that_ good.”

“See? Thank you.”

At that moment, Rosé came back carrying a binder. 

“Hey,” Jonghyun said. “Did you find them?”

“Yep! I got worried there for a while,” Rosé said, sitting back down. “What did I miss?”

“Jonghyun just showed me what he’ll be performing for the intermission.” Naeun replied.  
“ _What?_ ” Rosé looked offended. “You showed Naeun but not _me_?”

Jonghyun smirked. “You know I never show my performances beforehand.”

“Well, you showed Naeun!”

“That’s because she’s not performing!” Jonghyun said. “....Wait. You’re not performing, right?”

Naeun shook her head. “Definitely not. Even if I were planning to, I would drop the idea after hearing you both sing.”

Rosé placed her guitar back on her lap. “So Naeun, since you’ve heard us both play, who do you think is better?”

“Ha!” Naeun laughed and shook her head. “I’m definitely _not_ answering that question.”

~*~

_Earlier..._

At this point, Taemin was in a bad mood. He avoided his friends, especially Key and Minho. He didn’t talk to anyone. He didn’t pay attention during classes. During lunch time, he stayed outside in the school yard and just lay down on the grass. 

_Should I just confront her or what? If I confront her, she might get even more mad at me. She can’t ignore me forever though…_

He closed his eyes and took a nap right there under the trees where he can enjoy the shade and the cool breeze. He skipped the rest of his classes for the day. He woke up when Kai was shaking him by the shoulder.

“Hey…” Kai said. “Dude, wake up.”

Taemin groaned.

“Taemin, it’s the end of the day. Wake up.”

Taemin finally sat up and rubbed his eyes. He ran his hand through his hair as he started to get his bearings. 

“Did you really sleep here all day?” Kai asked, as he sat down beside Taemin.

“Not all day. Just lunch until now.”

“Did you skip your classes?”

Taemin nodded groggily.

“Dude… You know you shouldn’t do that.”

Taemin shrugged. “I’m too stressed now. I wouldn’t pay attention anyway so I’d rather not be there…”

Kai sighed and shook his head. “Look, I’m not going to nag you but like I said, you really shouldn’t do that.”

Taemin sighed. He said nothing for a while, leaving both boys in silence. Kai wanted to ask about Naeun but he figured that it might be the main reason why his friend was acting like this. He decided to offer comfort instead.

“Do you want to dance a little bit? The room is empty.”

Taemin sighed. There was nothing else for him to do anyway, and dancing always helps him relax.

“Sure, why not? Go ahead though. I’ll just get my spare clothes.”

After Kai left, Taemin stood up and stretched a bit before going inside. Once he strolled inside the hallways, he noticed that there were barely any students left. _Wow, did I really sleep that long?_ He arrived at his locker and got his bag containing extra shirts, a pair of pants, a pair of shoes, and a towel. As he walked through the hallway going to the dance practice room, he passed by the music room. He heard a familiar voice singing along with the sound of a keyboard. _Is that Jjong? It must be… Nobody usually stays this late in the music room._

When he peered through the glass door, he did see Jonghyun, but he saw Naeun as well - just the two of them together. He saw her clapping after Jonghyun stopped playing. They were smiling and talking. Taemin didn’t like it one bit, especially after seeing Minho and Key with Naeun. He frowned and clenched his fist. Suddenly, he didn’t feel like dancing anymore. He texted Kai. _Sorry, dude. Something came up._ He stormed through the hallways, angry and confused.

Because he was so distracted, he didn’t even notice Rosé pass by and enter the music room. _Hmm…_ she thought. _What’s got him so worked up?_

~*~

_Thursday…_

“Naeun…” Chaeyoung said. “Why would you even consider that?”

“I don’t know, Chae…” Naeun replied pensively. “He’s my neighbor. I want to be civil with him at least.”

“I just don’t want you to get hurt again.”

“I won’t. I can handle it.” Naeun said with a small smile. “I’m a big girl.”

“Okay. If anything bad happens, we’re here for you.”

“Thank you.” Naeun hugged her friend. “I have to go, or else Eunji might leave without me. Bye Naeun!”

Chaeyoung ran off, leaving Naeun alone. The latter fished out her phone from her bag and texted Taemin. 

_Hi Taemin. Are you busy now? Can we talk? I’ll wait for you at the library._

After sending the text, she took a deep breath and made her way to the library. She thought about her first day and how Taemin showed her around school. She remembered their dates and how he would make her smile and laugh. She had never fallen this fast for someone before and it scared her. _I really did have feelings for him. I still do. Does he still have feelings for me?_

Once she entered the double doors, she headed straight to the far corner of the mezzanine - the spot Taemin showed her during her first day. Before she sat down, she heard people talking. She checked the room across from her and saw Onew writing on a whiteboard while discussing with what she assumed to be the student council. Onew saw her and gave her a nod. She returned the gesture, went back, and sat on one of the bean bags. She closed her eyes and mentally prepared herself to face Taemin.

After a while, Naeun felt someone poking her arm. She grimaced and opened her eyes. She found Onew looking at her. 

“Oh…” Naeun sat up and rubbed her eyes. “I must have fallen asleep. How long was I out?”

Onew sat down beside her and leaned back. “About half an hour or so. I found you here after the student council meeting.”

“ _Half an hour?_ ” Naeun almost shouted. “Oh no, what if I missed him?”

“Who?”

“Umm… Taemin.” Naeun fiddled with her fingers. “I was supposed to meet him here to talk.”

“Talk about what?”

“About….us…”

“Ahh….” 

Neither of them spoke for a while.

“Do you still love him?” Onew asked. 

“...Yes… I think I do…”

“Then it’s good that you’re giving him another chance.”

“I didn’t say anything about that. We’re just going to talk about what happened.”

“And then what?”

“Well… we’ll see where it goes from there.”

“I see… For what it’s worth, he really does have feelings for you. I’ve never seen him like this before.”

“You think so?”

“I know so! I wouldn’t have been voted student council president if I weren’t smart!” Onew gave her a cheeky smile.

“Okay, smarty-pants.” Naeun laughed. “How was your meeting, by the way?”

“A lot of work, as usual.”

“Because of the school fair?”

“Yep.” Onew let out a loud sigh. 

“I really admire you, by the way.” Naeun said. Onew gave her a confused look.

“Not a lot of people would dedicate so much of themselves for a project like this. I bet it’ll get you a lot of extra credit.”

“That’s true. The extra credit doesn’t hurt. That’s not my main motivation though.”

“What is it then?”

“To be honest, I had no intention of running for president. I was just convinced by the people around me. I gave in because of peer pressure. But as time passed, I found another reason to run.”

“Which is?”

“Because the students need a voice. They need someone to be there for them. When I won, I knew that it wasn’t just about me anymore. It wasn’t about what _I_ wanted. It was about them, and that’s what I always think about whenever I do my work.”

Naeun smiled. “Is that why you don’t really delegate your work either?”

“I guess. Maybe I’m also a perfectionist that way.”

“Well, I’m sure the school fair will be amazing. You’re doing great.”

“Thank you.” Onew beamed at her. “So… Are you still going to wait for Taemin?” He stood up and checked the windows. “It’s almost dark out.”

Naeun paused to think. “Well, it’s been over an hour… I guess he’s not coming…” Naeun frowned. _Maybe I missed my chance…_

“Don’t worry. Maybe he was just busy today. There’s always tomorrow.” Onew said. He stood up and offered his hand to Naeun. When they were both ready to go, they made their way to the main entrance of the school. 

“Which way are you going?” Onew asked, heading to a scooter that was parked near the entrance. 

“Oh, just a couple of blocks over on that side,” Naeun pointed. 

Suddenly, Onew handed her a helmet after strapping in his own. “Come on. I’ll drive you there.”

Naeun shook her head. “No, it’s okay. I don’t mind walking.”

“What kind of guy would I be if I didn’t bring you home at this hour?”

“But-”

“Nope, you’re not going to win this argument,” Onew laughed and smiled at her. “Just get on already.”

Naeun smiled. _How could I possibly refuse when he smiles like that? It’s a wonder this guy doesn’t have a girlfriend yet._ She put on the helmet and held on to him as they drove away.

~*~

_Earlier that afternoon…_

Taemin was about to go home when he heard Principal Hodong calling him to his office.

“Mr. Lee,” he said with a straight face. “I need to speak with you. _Now._ ”

Rolling his eyes, he followed the man into his office. He sat down on one of the wooden chairs and dropped his bag onto the floor. When Hodong was about to talk, his telephone rang and he took the call. This left a very impatient Taemin waiting for about half an hour. He fiddled with his fingers, bounced his leg, and shuffled his feet until Hodong focused on him again.

“Mr. Lee,” Principal Hodong said. “I heard that you skipped classes again yesterday…”

Taemin looked away and nodded. 

“Where did you go?”

“Does it matter?”

“Please just answer the question, Mr. Lee.”

“I was sleeping in the school yard. When I woke up, it was already the end of the day.”

“Is there any particular reason why you cut class?”

Taemin shrugged and shook his head.

“Taemin, I was happy when you started behaving properly again these past few weeks. But then, yesterday happened and frankly, I’m worried. Is there anything you want to share?”

Taemin shook his head. Hodong looked at him with pleading eyes, but Taemin avoided them.

“No. It’s nothing. I just… lost track of time.”

Hodong sighed and leaned back into his chair. “Okay, Mr. Lee. I’ll take your word for it. But if this happens again, I’m going to have to call your parents. I might have to forbid you from participating in the showcase too.”

Taemin said nothing.

“I’m going to ask you one last time. Is there anything you want to share?”

Taemin shook his head. 

“Alright. If you have nothing to say, then we’re done here. Thank you, Mr. Lee. You may go.”

“Thank you, Sir.” Taemin grabbed his backpack from the floor and left the office, leaving Hodong shaking his head in disappointment.

Once Taemin was out of the office, he checked his phone. It had been in silent mode ever since the principal called him in. He widened his eyes when he checked his messages. 

_Hi Taemin. Are you busy now? Can we talk? I’ll wait for you at the library._

_Oh my god. Naeun texted! But this was… one hour ago? But I was still in Hodong’s office!_

By this time, the rest of the school was already closed. When he exited the building, he quickly tried to type a reply but was distracted by the hum of an engine. 

_Onew? Not you too..._

He looked closer and saw his friend riding his scooter with none other than Naeun herself. They drove away, leaving Taemin kicking the pavement and groaning in anger.

~*~

_Friday afternoon…_

After a day of successfully dodging his friends and brushing them off when they tried to talk to him, all Taemin wanted to do was go home. However, his phone buzzing in his pocket stopped him. It was a message from Key.

_Hey, Taemin. We don’t know if you’re okay or not but the guys are over here having dinner. You can come if you want. We’ll be here._

Taemin clutched his phone tightly and exhaled. He had been furious with his friends the whole week and he thought it was about time he gave them a piece of his mind. He immediately made his way to Key’s house. The househelp let him in and Taemin found his friends hanging out on the balcony. 

“Hey, Taemin!” Jonghyun said. “What’s up?”

“Don’t give me that!” Taemin snapped. “I have a bone to pick with you. _All of you._ ”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys!
> 
> I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I know it was really long but cutting it didn't seem like the best option, especially since the timeline was so crucial in this part of the story. That said, I hope you guys understood the timing of the events that occurred. I hope you were able to visualize their interactions (or rather, the lack of it).
> 
> Also, there's going to be a lot of drama in the next chapter so brace yourselves! ;)
> 
> Thank you so much for reading! I'll see you next week! :)


	14. Chapter 14

_“Hey, Taemin!” Jonghyun said. “What’s up?”_

_“Don’t give me that!” Taemin snapped. “I have a bone to pick with you. All of you.”_

The four boys exchanged confused glances and looked back at Taemin. “What’s going on?” Minho finally said.

“What’s going on? What’s going on is that you guys are hitting on Naeun behind my back!” Taemin wasn’t hiding his anger anymore.

“What?” Jonghyun said. “What the hell are you talking about?”

“Are you seriously going to pretend like nothing’s happening? I’m not blind, Jonghyun!”

Onew stood up from his seat and held his hands up. “Okay, can everybody stop shouting for one second? Let’s talk this out _calmly_.”

“No!” Taemin said. “I will _not_ calm down. I’ve been holding this in for days now and it’s about time I told you guys how I feel.”

“Okay,” Key said, challenging Taemin. “Be our guest.”

“I know that all of you are trying to get with Naeun without telling me.”

Key rolled his eyes. “Okay, fine. Indulge us. How exactly were we doing that?”

“You want me to go one by one? Fine, I’ll do it.”

He turned to face Minho. “Last Monday, you told me that you were working on your Lit project with Naeun.”

Minho shrugged. “Yeah, I was.”

“Yeah, well I went to the library and saw you guys. You were throwing paper planes at her and laughing. Uh-huh, that sure looked like _work._ ”

“Taemin, please,” Minho said. “We were just-”

“Flirting? Yeah. _That’s what you’re good at._ ” Minho started to get angry. 

“Hey, hey, hey!” Jonghyun interjected. “There’s no need for passive-aggressive behavior here.”

“Oh really?” Taemin glared at him. “Don’t act like you’re not involved, Jjong. I saw you with her in the music room last Wednesday. Do you want to tell me why she was there with you?”

“Okay, first of all, those were Music Club hours. Of course, I’d be there. Second, I’m not even the reason why she was there. Rosé wanted our opinion on what she was going to play in the showcase.”

“Well, when I saw you guys, Rosé wasn’t there!”

“That’s probably when she went back to her locker because she forgot her sheet notes.”

“ _Oh really?_ How _convenient_ for you!”

Then Taemin looked at Key. The latter said coolly, “Okay. What did _I_ do?”

“I saw you guys working together in the arts and crafts room. I saw you laughing and talking. Why was there in the first place?”

“I was helping her out with the Literature project!”

“Oh my God! Here we go again with the goddamn Literature project!”

“Well, I’m telling the truth, Taemin!”

Taemin shut his eyes and clenched his fists. He then turned to Onew.

“And you…” Taemin said bitterly.

Onew gave him a puzzled look. “What did I do?”

“You think you’re _so_ smart trying to fool me. I saw you with her on your scooter yesterday. You act like you’re just an innocent nerd when-”

“Taemin,” Onew explained. “It’s not like that. I gave her a ride home because it was getting dark! Did you want me to leave her there to walk home alone that late?”

“No! But-”

“Yah!” Key shouted. “Taemin, sit your ass down for a second.”

Taemin stood his ground, crossed his arms, and looked back at Key. “Well? Are there any more excuses that you guys want to give me?”

“Let me get this straight,” Key said. “Did you _actually_ think that we were trying to get with Naeun behind your back?”

Taemin nodded. 

“Why would you think that?” Jonghyun said with a pained expression. “You know we’d never do that. Even back in middle school, none of us _ever_ did that to you…”

“But that’s just it! You all _knew_ how much it sucked for me in middle school! You were all there! You don’t know how much it hurts to feel like you’re not good enough!”

“So you think that’s what Naeun did?” Onew asked. “You think she used you to get to us? Then you think _we_ double-crossed you?”

Taemin’s mind was a mess and he was more confused than ever. “Y-Yes! No! I don’t know!”

Minho stood up. “I think I speak for everyone here when I say that we _don’t_ have any intention of doing that! We would _never_ do that to you, and I don’t think Naeun would either!”

The other three nodded in agreement. Taemin was still furious. He put his hands on his head, looked up at the sky, and groaned. He didn’t know what made sense anymore. At this point, he was just running on pure anger.

“So you’re on her side now?” Taemin snapped. “Is that it? Am I the bad guy here?”

Jonghyun held Key by the wrist to keep the latter from standing up in anger. However, that didn’t stop Key from exploding.

“ _Yes!_ ” Key shouted. “Yes, you are! Who was the one who dumped her? _You!_ Who decided to go back to being a playboy jerk right after? _You!_ And now, who’s trying to blame his friends for his mistakes? Guess what? _Still you!_ ”

“Well, if you hated my habit of being a playboy then why didn’t any of you tell me in the first place?”

“Because for God’s sake, you’re old enough to know that it’s not okay!” Onew said, getting worked up. “You’re _not_ a child anymore, Taemin! Take responsibility for your actions!”

“Yeah!” Jonghyun added. “You can’t just keep breaking things and tossing them aside and expect us to pick up the pieces, just like you did with Naeun!”

“ _What?_ ” Taemin glowered at Jonghyun. “What do you mean ‘just like I did with Naeun?’”

Minho walked over to Taemin, the taller boy scowling down at him. “Don’t think we didn’t see her when you dumped her... She was so hurt, Taemin. So don’t act like you’re the victim here. You _broke_ her. Don’t blame us for trying to help her put the pieces back together.”

Onew stood up and put a comforting hand on Taemin’s shoulder. “Taemin, please. Just calm down, okay? Come sit with us. We’ll talk it out…”

Taemin looked down at his feet. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t stop getting angry and at this point, he didn’t even know why. He roughly shrugged off Onew’s hand. 

“No,” he said, sharply. “I don’t believe any of you. I knew it was only a matter of time before you took advantage of me... And one more thing, don’t _ever_ talk about me and Naeun. What happened between me and her is _none of your business_.”

Minho sighed exasperatedly. “Taemin,” he said, still standing closely face to face with the boy. “Come on, you’re being stupid.”

That’s when Taemin lost it. He huffed and pushed Minho away. “What the fuck did you just say?”

Minho was furious now and pushed Taemin back. The two were seconds away from brawling when Key and Jonghyun came in between them.

“YAH!” Key shouted. “If you two are going to be like this, then get the fuck out of my house!”

Minho continued to glower at Taemin and vice versa, while Jonghyun and Key held them away from each other. After a few seconds of silence, Onew spoke up.

“Taemin,” he said. “I think it’s best if you leave. _Now._ ”

Taemin tugged away from Jonghyun and gave all of them a dirty look before leaving Key’s house. As he made his way home, he let go and finally let his tears flow down his cheeks. 

~*~

Taemin took his time going home. He knew it looked strange to the people passing by but he was crying his eyes out. For half of the time, he was constantly wiping his tears away with his hands. Later on, he just gave up and let them fall freely. He was bursting with sadness and he couldn’t come home and let his mother see him like this. 

When he reached his house, he looked across the street. He was tired - tired from crying, tired from walking, tired of everything. But he knew he couldn’t put this off any longer. He walked over to Naeun’s house and knocked on the door. Within seconds, Mrs. Son answered.

“Oh, hi Taemin!” she greeted warmly. 

“Hi, Mrs. Son.” Taemin replied. “I know it’s late and I’m sorry but can I please talk to Naeun?”

“Alright. Do you want to come in? I can fix you some tea.”

“Uhh, no, thank you. I’d rather stay outside.”

Mrs. Son nodded and went upstairs. Taemin paced on their front porch until he heard footsteps coming down the stairs. He stood in front of their doorway as Naeun headed his way. She leaned on the door jamb and faced him.

“Hi…” she said. “What is it, Taemin?”

“H-Hi…” he answered. “Can we talk?”

“I texted you yesterday and you didn’t reply. You didn’t meet me at the library either.”

“I’m sorry. I was stuck in Hodong’s office. I didn’t hear my phone.”

“Oh…”

“So… Can we talk? I really think we need to…”

“Okay. Me too,” Naeun said. “Mom, we’ll be out here, okay?”

“Okay!” she heard from the living room. 

Naeun closed the front door and sat on a bench on the front porch - the same one where they talked when she first moved back to her house. She sat with her legs folded while she hugged them close to her chest.

“So, what is it?” she asked.

“I want to talk about us, if that’s okay…” Taemin replied.

“Sure. You can talk about ‘us’ but I’m pretty sure you made it clear that there’s no ‘us’ anymore.” Naeun frowned bitterly.

“Okay, I know you’re mad but please hear me out.”

“Fine…”

“I was...stupid. When you asked me what we were, I just got triggered and I ended up pushing you away and I’m sorry.”

“Triggered? How?”

“Because a lot of the girls I’ve dated before asked me that question too. I didn’t want a relationship with any of them so I always ended things when they asked me that question.”

“So what are you saying? I’m supposed to let you off the hook because your playboy reflexes kicked in?”

“N-No, that’s not what I meant. Please, Naeun. Just listen…”

“Taemin, I don’t know how much listening it will take for me to be okay.” Naeun’s voice cracked. “I trusted you. I thought that if you would dump me, you’d have the decency to do it properly because we were friends.” 

Tears started falling down Naeun’s cheeks. Taemin wanted nothing but to wipe them from her cheeks. 

“Yes!” Taemin said, facing her, trying to hold back his own tears. “We’re friends, Naeun. But I wanted to tell you that I still want to be more than that. I know I hurt you and I wish I could take it all back…”

Naeun didn’t speak. Taemin sighed and leaned back against the wall of the house.

“Can I ask you something, Naeun?” Taemin said.

“What is it?”

“What exactly were you doing hanging out with my friends?”

“What do you mean?”

“Naeun, please. I just came back from having a fight with all of them, all because of you.”

“Me? What did I do?”

“I know you’ve been spending alone time with them these past few days.”

“So?”

“What do you mean ‘so?’ That’s not okay, Naeun.”

“Why not?”

“Because they’re _my_ friends!”

“ _What?_ Are you telling me that I can’t hang out with them just because they’re _your_ friends?”

“Yes!”

“Taemin, do you even hear yourself? You sound like you’re in kindergarten!”

“That’s not the point! I don’t want you hanging out with them because you’re _mine_ and I don’t want you to develop feelings for anyone else, especially them!”

“Excuse me? I’m _yours_?”

Taemin buried his face in his hands as he tried to make sense of his mind. It was like an out-of-body experience. He could hear himself saying stupid things but he just couldn’t seem to stop.

Naeun stood up and faced Taemin. She glared down at him as he sat on the bench. 

“Okay, you listen to me, Lee Taemin. Let me make things clear. First of all, I can hang out with _whoever_ I want to hang out with. You don’t own your friends and you certainly don’t own _me_. You can’t control who I can and cannot spend time with. Second, who the hell do you think you are trying to tell me that I’m ‘ _yours_?’ Am I a prize to be won? Is that it? I am no one’s property, especially not _yours_. Don’t forget. _You_ were the one who made sure of that when you blew me off.” 

Naeun started walking away from him when Taemin called out to her.

“Naeun, wait! I’m sorry! I keep saying the wrong things but that’s really not what I mean!”

Naeun rolled her eyes and glared daggers at him. “By the way, your friends were actually encouraging me to give you a second chance. I don’t think I’ll be taking their advice.”

“But-”

“It’s late, Taemin.” Naeun said, standing at the doorway. “You should go.”

Naeun closed the door, leaving Taemin standing there, hopelessly wishing for her to come back. After drying his tears, he walked away and headed to his own house. He ran straight up to his room and jumped into bed. There, he cried until sleep drowned his sorrows for the night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone!
> 
> Well, that was a lot of drama, wasn't it? You know who the real culprit is though, right? 
> 
> It's the LITERATURE PROJECT!!!! XD
> 
> Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Thank you so much for reading! I'll see you next week! :)


	15. Chapter 15

_“It’s late, Taemin. You should go.”_

Naeun’s words kept replaying in Taemin’s mind throughout the whole weekend. He couldn’t forget the anger in her eyes and how she closed the door in his face. It felt like an icicle through his heart. He spent the weekend holed up in his room, barely eating and barely talking to his mom. He wanted to let out the pain but he didn’t know how. It felt like he lost his best friends and Naeun forever. He wanted to talk to someone - maybe Kai or even his mom, but he was afraid he would push them away too. _Yeah, Taemin,_ he thought to himself. _Pushing people away… That’s what you’re good at…_

He tried everything to distract himself and cheer himself up. He played games, watched his favorite shows, and even tried to do his homework early. Nothing worked though. His concentration was off and he couldn’t set aside what happened last Friday. That’s why he dreaded coming to school on Monday. It was one thing to see them in his head, but another to see them in person. He couldn’t just wave them away like he did in his mind. 

Taemin entered the building and kept his eyes glued to the ground. He was too ashamed to make eye contact with anyone, especially the people he fought with. He headed straight to his locker and fixed his books for today’s classes. He caught a glimpse of Onew near him, at his own locker as well. He always thought that Onew was the kindest among his friends so he decided to try his luck with him. He took a breath and mustered up the courage to approach him. He tapped Onew on the shoulder and cleared his throat. Onew turned and saw Taemin fidgeting with his hands.

“H-Hi, Onew,” Taemin said. “Can we talk?”

Onew rubbed the back of his neck. “Umm... Maybe not now, Taemin… I still need… time…” 

Onew shut his locker and walked away from the other boy. Taemin sighed defeatedly. _Even Onew hates me…_

The bell rang. It was time for everyone to go to class. However, Taemin really didn’t feel like being around anyone right now. He quickly made his way to the roof before the teachers or the janitors saw him. There he stayed for the rest of the day, taking in the fresh air and trying to dream his problems away.

~*~

Taemin was sleeping when he heard someone clear his throat and nudge him gently. When he opened his eyes, he saw one of the janitors crouching beside him. 

“Hey, boy…” the man said. “Wake up. You’re not supposed to be here.”

Taemin groaned and rubbed his eyes. He stood up and grabbed his bag. “What time is it?”

“A little after lunch,” the janitor replied. Taemin followed him to the door. “Going here was real dangerous, kid. What if you had woken up and the door was already locked? You’re lucky I went here to clean the gutter.”

“I’m sorry…”

“You know I’m going to have to bring you to the principal, right?”

“Yeah, I know…”

When they entered the administration offices, Taemin was asked to wait outside Principal Hodong’s office. It was a bittersweet experience for him. On one hand, he was in trouble _again._ On the other, he definitely won’t run into anyone else. While he waited, he played games on his phone. After a while, he realized that he had been waiting for nearly half an hour. 

_I wonder what’s taking so long…_ Taemin thought. _Maybe he’s talking to another student in there?_

Suddenly, someone entered the administration section. Taemin widened his eyes. It was his mother. He stood up and called out. “Mom? What are you doing here?”

Lee Haemi turned to her son and approached him. “The principal called and asked me to come. What’s wrong?”

At that moment, Principal Hodong opened the door to his office. “Ah, Mrs. Lee, you’re here. Please come inside. You too, Taemin.”

Once they were inside, they took their seats and waited for Hodong to speak.

“Mr. Lee, I’m sorry but I warned you last week,” he said. “I told you that if you cut classes again, I’d have to call your parents.”

“What? Taemin, you’ve been cutting classes?” Taemin’s mother asked.

Taemin kept his eyes on the floor and nodded.

“I’m afraid so, Mrs. Lee,” Hodong continued. “He was found sleeping in the school yard last Thursday. I gave him a warning then. But this morning, one of the janitors found him sleeping on the roof.”

Hodong and Haemi both looked at Taemin. 

“Care to explain, Mr. Lee?”

Taemin kept his eyes glued to the floor and shook his head. 

“Nothing to say? Even in your defense?”

Taemin shook his head again.

“Well, if Taemin refuses to say anything,” Hodong continued. “We need to discuss his punishment.”

Haemi kept looking pleadingly at her son, silently begging him for an explanation. However, Taemin couldn’t even meet his mother’s gaze.

“If I may, Principal Kang…” Haemi said. “I know my son has missed enough classes but I would like to request that you give him the rest of the day and tomorrow off…”

Both Taemin and Hodong looked confused and waited for an explanation. Haemi reached over and held her son’s hand. 

“I think this is partly my fault. I don’t think I’ve been spending enough time with him and that may be one of the reasons why he’s acting out.”

“So… you think spending more time with him will correct his behavior?”

“Yes, I think so. Are you a parent, Mr. Kang?”

“Yes, actually. But what does that have to do with-”

“And as a parent, you would want to be close with your children right? You would want them to feel like they can tell you anything?” Haemi smiled at her son. “And that you’d love them anyway, right?”

Taemin smiled back at his mother and held her hand tightly.

“Yes, Mrs. Lee,” Hodong replied. “That’s right.”

“Well, I think Taemin and I just need more quality mother-and-son time. I can promise that he’ll do better when he comes back. Would this plan be alright?”

“Alright, Mrs. Lee. But this will be the first and the last time I’ll allow this.”

“Of course,” Haemi replied. “Thank you, Principal Kang.” 

She squeezed Taemin’s hand and gave him a look. 

“Oh! R-Right…” Taemin said. “Thank you, Sir.”

“Okay then,” Hodong said. “Well if that’s all, then we’re finished here.” 

He stood up and shook Mrs. Lee’s hand. “Thank you for coming, Mrs. Lee.”

“Thank _you_ for your consideration, Principal Kang.”

Taemin bowed as they left his office. “Thank you again, Sir,” he said.

~*~

After leaving the office, Taemin and Mrs. Lee went to their car and headed straight home. Neither of them said a word on the way. As soon as they arrived, they both sat in the living room, waiting for each other to speak.

“Mom?” Taemin finally said. “W-Why did you do that?”

“You heard me,” Haemi replied. “I think we haven’t been spending enough time with each other.”

“Oh..”

“So, do you want to tell me what’s going on now?”

Taemin kept his eyes on the carpet.

“I can wait all day, Taemin. In fact, I can wait until tomorrow…”

“Mom,” Taemin started speaking. “There’s a lot to unload here. I don’t even know where to begin...”

“Maybe you can start by telling me what’s been going on with you and Naeun?”

Taemin sighed and lay his head back. Without even knowing, tears started flowing down his cheeks.

“I.... I love her, Mom,” he said, trying to hold back his tears. “But I think I messed it all up…”

Haemi put her arm around her son and rested his head on her shoulder. “How? Tell me…”

“If I tell you, you’ll hate me, Mom.”

“I won’t hate you. I can’t hate you. You’re my son.”

There was silence. Haemi waited until her son felt comfortable enough to speak again.

“I screwed up, Mom. She gave me a real chance but I blew her off when all she did was be nice to me. She was the only girl who saw me for who I was, without judging me because of my reputation.”

“What reputation is that exactly?”

“It’s a long story…”

“Taemin, we have the rest of the day and tomorrow. Take your time.”

Taemin exhaled and stayed quiet for a while before speaking again. “Mom, remember how I started dating in middle school?”

“Yes…”

“Well, most of the girls I dated… They didn’t exactly treat me right.”

“What do you mean?”

“They only used me to get to my friends…”

“Tell me more...”

“They would date me and pretend to like me just to get close to my friends. Then they would try to go out with my friends instead.”

“Oh, I see… I’m sorry. I didn’t know.”

“Don’t be sorry. It’s not your fault, Mom.”

“Well, what did your friends do about it?”

“They never said yes to any girl who did that to me. They’re good guys.”

“Speaking of your friends, what did they say about this whole Naeun situation?”

“That’s the thing, Mom… I messed it up with them too...”

“Why? What happened?”

“I-I thought they were trying to get together with Naeun behind my back…”

“All of them?”

“Yes…”

“Do you really believe they would do that? You’ve known each other since you were in second grade.”

“No… I don’t think they would. That’s what they said too. But at the time, I didn’t believe them.”

“You’ve talked about this with them?”

“I wouldn’t exactly call it a ‘talk.’ I kind of exploded and started accusing them of doing that.”

“What did they say?”

“Well, they defended themselves. They kept telling me to calm down but I couldn’t. I-I was just so angry and I… I almost got into a fight with Minho…”

Haemi could feel her son starting to cry again. She stroked his shoulders to help him calm down.

“I’m sorry, Mom. I’m sorry I’ve been crying like this…” Taemin said as he frantically tried to wipe his face with his hands.

“No, sweetie. It’s okay. You can cry all you want.”

Haemi rubbed her son’s arm and stroked his hair until she heard the sniffles stop.

“Mom?” Taemin murmured. “What am I supposed to do now?”

“Hmmm… I think you should worry about that tomorrow. Right now, you need some food and rest.”

Taemin wiped his face before sitting upright again. His mom wiped a part of his wet cheeks with her hand.

“Taemin, you’re human. You make mistakes. It’s okay as long as you apologize and make up for them.”

Taemin nodded and hugged his mother. “Thank you, Mom.”

A few hours later, Taemin and Haemi were sitting in the living room, eating pizza and watching reruns of a drama series.

“Mom?” Taemin asked, munching on a slice. “Why are we watching this? Can’t we watch something newer?”

“What? I love Descendants of the Sun! It’s a classic!”

“Yeah, but it’s boring!” Taemin pointed at the TV. “See, that guy isn’t even doing CPR properly! And he’s supposed to be _a doctor!_ ”

“Hushhh… I can’t hear what they’re saying.”

Taemin sighed and smiled at his mom. At least there was one person in his life whom he could always count on.

~*~

“YAH! Lee Taemin!”

Taemin groaned as he snuggled deeper into his pillow. He tried to fall asleep again but his mom pulled away the whole duvet from the bed.

“Taemin! Wake up! It’s almost noon!”

He sat up and stretched his arms. He squinted at his clock to check the time. _Wow, it really is almost noon…_

“Come on! Get up!” Haemi said. “We have a busy day ahead of us.”

“What?” said Taemin, rubbing his eyes and standing up. His mom handed him the duvet and he started making his bed. 

“Did you really think you were going to spend the day playing video games?”

“Uhhh… yes?” Taemin said cheekily.

“Well, that’s where you’re wrong, Mister,” his mother said. “Technically, you’re still under punishment.”

“Oh… right. So what is it?”

“You’re going to help me run my errands today. We’ll go to the supermarket. Then, you’re going to help me do the laundry and make dinner.”

Taemin was confused. _That doesn’t sound like punishment._ “...That’s it?”

Haemi raised an eyebrow and smirked at her son. “Do you want more?”

“Nope! I’m good.” Taemin raised his hands in defeat as his mom left the room. _Well, now I know where I got my smart-ass attitude._

~*~

Taemin waited patiently, leaning on the cart as his mother gathered items from the shelves. Occasionally, he would get the items that were out of her reach. While they were at the dairy products section, Taemin added a couple of bottles of banana milk to their car when his mother wasn’t looking.

_Hmm… I wonder how many items I can add without Mom noticing…_

When they passed by the cereal section, he sneakily put a box of chocolate cereal into the cart. Next, he added two packs of noodle snacks. When they went back to the dairy section, he even added organic cheese for babies just for fun. 

As they lined up at the checkout counter, he snickered to himself. He was just about to add a pack of triple A batteries when he felt his mother’s hand on his shoulder. 

“Taemin, put those back, along with the others.” 

Taemin was dumbfounded but then he and his mother started laughing.

“Did you really think I wouldn’t notice?” she said. “I used to do that to your Grandma too.”

Taemin was still chuckling while he gathered the extra items. “Can we at least keep the banana milk and the chocolate cereal?”

“Aren’t you too old for banana milk?”

“Mom, no one is _ever_ too old for banana milk.”

~*~

The rest of the day passed by quickly. As they did the laundry and cooked dinner, Taemin told his mother more about what happened with Naeun and with his friends. Soon enough, Mrs. Lee and Taemin were at the dining table, eating spaghetti.

“So do you have any advice on what I should do next?” Taemin said

“Well with your friends, I think you just need time. Give it a couple of days. Things will get better. You’ve known each other since the second grade. Friendships like that don’t just end because of a stupid fight.”

Taemin shook his head and sighed. “It really was a stupid fight, huh?” 

“Yes, it was.”

“Mom, you’re being really straightforward.”

“Of course. How else am I going to get through that thick skull of yours?” Haemi laughed.

Taemin chuckled, but remembering a certain girl brought a frown back to his face. “What about Naeun, Mom? What do you think I should do?”

“Well, first of all, I think you should apologize.”

“I already did.”

“Then do it again. What you did was really wrong, Taemin.”

“I know… Anything else?”

“Well, that’s up to you two. Personally, I don’t mind you dating her but you two have to work it out between yourselves.”

Taemin nodded and continued eating his dinner.

“Although,” his mother continued. “From what you’ve told me, she seems to have very strong feelings for you too. I think you can find a way to work things out…”

Haemi gave her son a stern look. “But you have to really commit, okay? I don’t want my son to have a playboy reputation anymore. Also, if I hear about you cutting classes again, I won’t be as lenient as I was this time. Got it?”

“Yes, Ma’am.”

When they finished their dinner, Haemi started putting their dirty dishes in the sink. “I’ll take care of this, honey. You go and rest. It’s back to school for you tomorrow.”

“Okay.” Taemn was rushing upstairs when he paused midway. He walked back to the kitchen and hugged his mom from the back. He rested his head on her shoulder and gave her a gentle squeeze. 

“Thank you, Mom. I love you.”

“I love you too, Taemin.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone!
> 
> So yeah, this chapter was pretty calm (especially compared to what happened last time). I just want to point out a few things.
> 
> 1\. Haemi IS NOT Taemin's mom's real name. I think he mentioned her real name on WGM but I felt like it was too personal so I just chose another name.  
> 2\. Yes, Taemin cried again in this chapter. I know we don't see him cry a lot but this is just how I visualize him in this story. This is by no means an actual personality trait. (But hey, it's okay for guys to cry too, ya know? :) )  
> 3\. Banana milk is awesome, guys. 
> 
> Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Thank you so much for reading! I'll see you next week! :)


	16. Chapter 16

_The previous Saturday night..._

“Ugh! I can’t believe that guy!” Eunji said. “Pass the chips, please!”

Naeun and her friends were on the carpeted floor of her bedroom. Rosé, Chaeyoung, and Eunji sat on their respective sleeping bags while Naeun leaned against the side of her bed. In the center of their circle were bowls of chips, pretzels, gummy candies, popcorn, and a large box of pepperoni pizza. Chaeyoung passed Eunji the bowl of chips while Rosé poured more soda into her cup. 

After Naeun and Taemin fought the previous night, Naeun was confused about her feelings now more than ever. She spent the rest of the night crying into her pillow. However, she decided she couldn’t deal with this alone anymore. So, she called for reinforcements. After getting permission from her parents, she rushed to tell the girls. 

_Hey guys,_ Naeun texted in the group chat. _I know it’s short notice but are you up for a sleepover at my place tonight?_

 _I’m so there!_ Chaeyoung replied. 

_Count me in!_ said Eunji.

 _I’m game!_ Rosé texted.

Knowing that her friends could be with her at this time was already starting to make Naeun feel better.

 _Great!_ Naeun said. _Is 6PM good for you guys?_

 _No prob!_ Chaeyoung said. _Eunji, can we catch a ride?_

_Yup, I’ll pick you and Rosé up on the way and then we’ll head to Naeun’s._

_Can’t wait! See you later! :)_ Naeun texted. 

After the girls arrived and got settled in Naeun’s room, she started telling them about what happened the previous night. 

“I know, right?” Naeun said, nibbling on a gummy worm.

“I wonder what his friends think about all of this…” Rosé said. “Should I ask Jjong?”

“I don’t think so,” Chaeyoung said. “We don’t want this issue to get bigger than it already is.”

“Naeun, aren’t you a little bit curious about why they fought about you?” said Rosé.

“I am, but that’s none of my business. Plus, I don’t want it to be like I’m gathering people to gang up on him.”

The girls shrugged and they stayed quiet for a while, only the sound of chewing chips filling the room.

“You love him, don’t you?” said Eunji.

“I…” Naeun looked away. “I think so. Though I’m not so sure anymore because of last night…”

“Do you at least want to make up with him as friends?” Chaeyoung suggested.

“Maybe… But not now. I’m still angry.. And hurt.”

“And you have every right to be.” Rosé said. 

“Is it okay if we ask what his friends told you about him?” Chaeyoung said. 

“Yeah, it’s okay,” Naeun said. “Generally, they just told me that I really had an effect on Taemin. They said that they’ve never seen him that way before. They encouraged me to talk to him and maybe give him another chance.”

Eunji reached for a slice of pizza and spoke up. “Do you think they just said that just because they’re friends with him?”

“Hmm… I don’t think so,” Naeun said, reaching for a pretzel. “What do you girls think though? I mean, you’ve been in school with them much longer than I have.”

“I’m not sure about the other three,” Rosé said. “As for Jonghyun, he’s one of the sincerest people I know. I don’t think he would lie to you to save somebody else’s ass, even if it’s one of his best friends.”

“What about Minho?” Chaeyoung asked, sipping from her cup of soda. “Aren’t you guys kind of friends?”

“That’s true…” Naeun said. “But I don’t think he would do that either.”

After another long silence, Naeun spoke again. “I think I’ll talk to Taemin again. I just need…time. I don’t want to be angry and upset when I talk to him. I’ll just wait until I can be...rational about it. That makes sense, right?”

The other three nodded. 

Chaeyoung placed a comforting hand on Naeun’s arm. “But if it gets too much, you know that it’s okay to totally walk away, right?”

“Yeah… Thank you…” Naeun smiled at her friend. She signed and clapped her hands together. “Okay, enough Taemin talk! Let’s play games!”

“What about Uno? Or Monopoly?” Rosé suggested.

Eunji scoffed and threw a pretzel at Rosé. “Neither. You know those games ruin friendships, right?”

“Umm… Truth or Dare?” asked Chaeyoung.

“Boring,” Eunji said, throwing a piece of popcorn in the air and catching it with her mouth. 

“Okay, why don’t you suggest something?”

“Let’s just finish eating then do some beauty routines. I brought a whole jar of Aztec clay mask and some headbands for us.”

“Sounds great!” Naeun said. “Then maybe while we’re waiting for the mask to take effect, we can watch Netflix?”

“Yes!” Rosé clapped excitedly. “We can watch Fro-”

“I swear to God, Rosé,” Chaeyoung pointed at the blonde. “Do not say Frozen. We are not watching Frozen again.”

“This is different! It’s the first movie!”

“Nooo...” Eunji chimed in.

“Fine,” Rosé pouted and crossed her arms. “What do you suggest then?”

“What about Mean Girls?” Naeun said. “It’s a classic chick flick.”

“That is so _fetch,_ ” Eunji mimicked, making the girls giggle. 

“Okay then,” Chaeyoung said, starting to clean up. “Let’s set aside the food. Then Eunji can work her magic with the masks, then we can start the movie!”

After cleaning up, Eunji and the three girls wore their headbands, Eunji showed them how and where to apply the clay. 

“There we go,” Eunji said. “Now we all look like Shrek.”

Soon after, they were watching the movie on Naeun’s laptop. She glanced at her friends and smiled. The past few days have been emotionally exhausting for her, so she was glad that her girls were there. Even if it was just for one night, she finally felt at ease.

~*~

The week started peacefully. Naeun and Minho’s presentation went well. They were certain that they would get a good grade. Other than that, school was uneventful. That is, until Wednesday after gym class. Eunji and Naeun were changing clothes in the locker room when they heard other voices from the next row of lockers. Eunji motioned for Naeun to stay quiet while the two of them listened.

“Have you heard of that Naeun girl?” said one of them.

“You mean the new girl?” answered the other. “Yeah, what about her?”

“You know how Taemin hasn’t been hanging out with his friends right? Well, it’s all because of her.”

Eunji and Naeun exchanged confused looks and kept listening.

“Why? What did she do?”

“From what I’ve heard, they fought over her. Especially Taemin and Minho.”

“For real? I guess I shouldn’t be surprised. She was sticking to Taemin the first week she was here but I also see her walking around with Minho.”

“Yeah? Maybe she was just using Taemin to get to the other four.”

“Maybe. You know how some girls are. Collect and select.”

“What a bitch…”

“I know! I can’t believe Taemin dumped me for that slut.”

Eunji and Naeun recognized that voice as Eunsook’s. 

“Do the boys know?”

“I don’t know, but the rumor is spreading like wildfire.”

“Poor Taemin though…”

“Karma’s a bitch. That’s what he gets for dumping me…”

When Eunji and Naeun heard the lockers close, they went back to changing their clothes and pretending like nothing happened. But on their way out, Naeun and Eunsook exchanged looks. Eunsook scoffed, rolled her eyes at her, and left the locker room. Eunji and Naeun were now the only people left. Naeun sat on the bench with a sad look on her face.

“Is it true?” Naeun asked. “Have people been saying that?”

“I-I really don’t know,” Eunji replied, putting her arm around her friend’s shoulders. “I haven’t heard anything, I swear.”

“You know it’s not true, right? I would never do that to Taemin and his friends.”

“Of course not! You would never…”

After getting fully dressed, Naeun and Eunji left the locker room and headed to their main lockers. Luckily, gym was their last class of the day. As they walked along the halls, Naeun noticed that people were giving her weird looks and whispering as she passed by. She tried to ignore it but the accusations kept coming. 

_You know she and Jonghyun were alone in the Music Room…_  
_I always see her walking around alone with Minho...  
She rode on the back of Onew’s scooter last week…_

Naeun just kept her head down and concentrated on getting to her locker as fast as possible. When they arrived, Rosé and Chaeyoung were waiting for then. They had looked concerned and anxious.

“You heard, didn’t you?” Naeun said.

Chaeyoung and Rosé nodded. 

“How did you find out?” Chaeyoung asked.

“We overheard that bitch Eunsook and some other girl talking about it in the locker room after gym,” answered Eunji. “What about you guys? How did you know?”

“We overheard some people talking about it too,” said Rosé. “One of them even had the nerve to come and ask us if it was true.”

“What did you say?” said Naeun.

“Of course we said no!” said Chaeyoung. “And we told her that it was none of her business.”

Naeun sighed. Even if she moved around a lot, she was aware of this kind of drama. She was able to see it happen to other people at her previous schools. She just never expected to be in the center of it. 

While the girls waited for her to finish fixing the books in her locker, two girls stopped in front of them. They started whispering and pointing at Naeun. 

“Hey!” Chaeyoung snapped. “Care to say that to her face? If not, then I’m politely asking you to get lost!”

The two girls scurried away as fast as they could. Naeun shut her locker and sighed. She wanted to cry, but not here.

“Should I talk to the guys about this?” she asked.

“I don’t know,” Rosé added. “It’s kind of a damned-if-you-do, damned-if-you-don’t situation. If you talk to them and other people see you, that might start more rumors. But even if you don’t, the rumors will keep going.”

Naeun pouted and spoke. “Hmm… I don’t know. I’m honestly too tired to think about this. Gym class really drained me.”

“Come on. Let’s go to Starbucks.” Eunji said. “I’m craving for a frappuccino.”

~*~

_Friday…_

After a relatively quiet week, Taemin finally decided to take action and make up with his friends. Luckily, they were all around Onew’s locker when he arrived. He tapped Minho’s shoulder and the latter turned to face him.

“Hi guys…” Taemin asked, fidgeting with his hands. “Can I talk to you for a minute?”

“About what?” Key glared at him.

“About what happened last week. Listen, I’m really sor-”

At that moment, the bell rang, giving the boys an excuse to leave Taemin behind.

“Let’s go, guys.” Jonghyun gave a sorrowful expression to Taemin but left him standing there as well. 

Before Onew followed, he motioned for Taemin to check his phone. It buzzed and he read the message from the older boy.

_We’ll be sleeping over at Key’s tonight. Maybe you can come over and we can talk. :)_

Taemin beamed at his friend. Onew gave him a small smile before walking away with the rest of them. Before he headed to class, he called his mother.

“Hi, Mom. I need a favor - two actually...”

~*~

After dance practice that afternoon, Taemin rushed out the school doors and got in their car. 

“Hi, Taemin,” Mrs Lee said, giving her son a kiss on the cheek. She handed him a big plastic container. “I baked twenty red velvet cupcakes. Is that enough?”

“More than enough. Thanks, Mom.” Taemin said.

As they drove to Key’s house, Taemin kept bouncing his leg and fidgeting. _You can do this, Taemin. Just be sincere and apologize. Just make up for it in any way you can._

When they arrived, Taemin took a deep breath and exhaled. 

“Good luck, honey,” Mrs. Lee said. 

“Thanks, Mom.”

Taemin slung his bag over his shoulder and carried the box of cupcakes in his hands.

_“Well, here goes nothing…”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello guys!
> 
> So I brought back a little bit of drama after a soft chapter. Things aren't looking well for Naeun. On the other side of the fence, let's hope things get better for Taemin! 
> 
> Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Thank you so much for reading! I'll see you next week! :)


	17. Chapter 17

Taemin rang the doorbell and was greeted by the househelp. She led them to the backyard where Key and the rest of his friends were swimming in the pool. 

“H-Hi guys…” he said meekly. 

“Yah!” Key said, stepping out of the pool. “What are you doing in my house?”

“I...umm..”

Onew walked over to Taemin and gave him a firm squeeze on his shoulder. 

“I invited him,” Onew said.

Jonghyun and Minho got out of the pool as well and walked over to the three boys.

“What?” Key said. “Lee Jinki, you can’t do that! You can’t just invite people to _other people’s homes!_ ”

“Well, I already did so we might as well hear him out.”

“I think we already heard enough last week…” Jonghyun said, frowning at Taemin.

“Come on, guys...” Onew said. “Let’s talk this out.”

Key rolled his eyes and sat down on a couch at the patio. Onew, Minho, and Jonghyun followed suit, leaving Taemin standing before them. _Where do I even begin?_ he thought.

“Well…?” said Minho, cutting off Taemin’s train of thought.

“Ah…” Taemin fumbled and put the plastic box on the table. “I brought a peace offering… My mom baked these this morning…”

Inside the box were twenty red velvet cupcakes, each with cream cheese filling inside. Key got one, peeled off the wrapper, and took a bite. He let out an “Mmm…” of satisfaction. The cupcakes smelled great but they tasted better - heavenly, even. 

“Your mom hasn’t lost her touch,” Key said, still chewing on the cupcake. “Anyway, go on…”

“I-I don’t even know where to begin…” Taemin said, sitting down on one of the chairs across the table. “I’m just really sorry, guys. I shouldn’t have accused you of trying to get with Naeun behind my back. I know none of you would ever do that. I was just so mad… and just... I’m sorry I didn’t listen...”

Taemin started tearing up again. He quickly wiped them away with his fingers. “I’m really sorry, everyone… And Minho… I’m so sorry I pushed you. I’m sorry I almost started a fight. I didn’t want to hurt you, I swear. I was just so angry and I wasn’t thinking clearly and I went _way_ over the line… I… don’t even know what to say anymore except that I really am sorry…”

“And you were an idiot,” Jonghyun added.

“Yes, I was…” Taemin said, sniffling.

“A _big_ idiot,” Minho said.

“Yes…”

“And you’re going to do everything you can to make it up to us,” said Key, already eating his third cupcake.

“Yes, I definitely will.”

“And we forgive you and we still love you,” said Onew, smiling.

“Yes, I-” Taemin looked up, his cheeks wet from crying. “W-What?”

“We do?” asked Key, Minho, and Jongyun, all giving Onew a puzzled look. 

“ _Yes_ , we do,” Onew emphasized. “Come on, he’s our baby, remember?”

Onew stood up, pulled Taemin up, and gave him a really tight and cheerful back hug. He motioned for the other guys to join them. Minho finally smiled, Jonghyun laughed, and Key rolled his eyes before they finally joined the group hug.  


“Okay, for the record,” Key said. “I wouldn’t have forgiven you if you hadn’t brought these cupcakes.”

At last, Taemin could finally smile and laugh. “I… I don’t know what to say. I just… I love you guys.”

“We know,” Jonghyun said.

The four boys exchanged mischievous looks. 

“Grab him _now!_ ” Minho said. 

Onew, Jonghyun, Key, and Minho pushed Taemin to the ground. With each of them grabbing one limb, they threw him into the swimming pool. When Taemin submerged, he coughed out some water and wiped his face.

“Okay, I deserved that,” he laughed. 

“Hell yeah, you did!” Onew laughed and held out his hand to help Taemin out of the pool. But instead, Taemin pulled him in. This led to everyone diving back into the pool and starting a chicken fight. After Taemin changed into a proper swimsuit, Jonghyun was on Onew’s shoulders, Key was on Taemin’s, and Minho was the referee.

“That’s not fair!” Minho said. “Why do I have to be the referee?”

“Because you get _way_ too competitive,” answered Jjong. “You might actually drown one of us just to win.”

“Oh my God, I only kicked Onew in the stomach _one_ time! He was fine!”

“I was underwater!” Onew said. “I lost my breath and inhaled so much water!”

“Yeah, but did you _die_?”

“Dirori!” Key interrupted. “Can we please start the game?”

“Okay, okay,” Minho said. “One more thing before we start… Jjong? Bet you never thought you could reach that high, huh?”

Jonghyun jumped off Onew’s shoulders and swam towards a fleeing and laughing Minho. 

“You are so _dead_ , Choi!”

~*~

After grilling some meat and eating a hearty dinner at the patio, the five of them laid out a big blanket on the grass . They all found their spot, laid down, and watched the stars.

“Man, it would be nice to sleep here…” said Minho.

“Sure,” Key said. “If you want to wake up with mosquito bites and bugs all over you.”

Taemin shuddered. “No, thank you.”

“So Taemin…” Jjong started. “Can we talk about Naeun?”

“Yes,” he replied. “What is it?”

“Were you able to fix things with her?”

“No… I made it worse…”

“Do you want to tell us what happened?”

“Well, I talked to her after we fought. I said really stupid things.”

“Like what?”

“I actually told her that it wasn’t okay for her to hang out with you guys because you’re _my_ friends. I also told her that I didn’t want any of you to develop feelings for her because she was _mine_. That’s verbatim, by the way.”

“Wow…” Minho said. 

“I know…” Taemin said. “Am I the biggest idiot in the world or what?”

“No, you’re not.” Jonghyun said.

Taemin propped himself up with his elbows. “I’m not?”

“You’re not. But, you _will be_ if you don’t try to fix things with her.”

“But how am I supposed to do that after our last conversation?”

“I’m pretty sure it wasn’t that bad,” Key said. 

“Believe me, it was.” Taemin answered. “She even said that you guys were trying to convince her to give me another chance. But after the fight, she said ‘she won’t be taking your advice.’”

“She was just mad. People say stupid things when they’re mad. I mean, look at you…”

Taemin tried to glare at him but ended up laughing. The rest of the boys started chuckling as well. “I really was being a dumbass, wasn’t I? I mean, even my mom said so.”

“She knows?” Onew asked.

“Yeah. I got in trouble for cutting classes and Hodong called her. She got me out of it though. That’s why I was gone last Tuesday.”

“So she knows about everything? Even the whole Naeun thing?”

“Yup.”

“Is that good or bad?”

“It’s good. At least I know I can count on her.”

“Well then, I guess all that’s left to settle is your relationship with Naeun.”

“We don’t even _have_ a relationship!”

“Well, you can change that,” said Onew. “Maybe you can tell her about everything, as in even what happened during middle school. She might be able to understand you better. Plus, the way I see it, I think you need closure as well. It’ll be cathartic for both of you. Hopefully, you’ll stop blaming Naeun for what your past girlfriends did.”

The four nodded in agreement with the eldest boy’s suggestion. 

“But you love her, right?” Jonghyun asked, also propping himself up. 

Taemin sighed and looked up at the stars. “I really do…”

“Then tell her! If you love her, tell her without holding back! Otherwise, you’re going to end up spending your days with us losers. Now is that what you want? Is _this_ the reality you want?”

“No! Of course not!”

“Great! But you do know that you still have to make it up to us right? Because of the fight?”

“Right. What can I do for you?”

“You can promise us that you’ll do everything you can to get Naeun back.”

“Aww man,” Minho whined. “I had other ideas.”

“I can promise that. But what if she really doesn’t want anything to do with me anymore?”

“She does.” Minho said. “I really believe that she does.”

“I hope so too…” Taemin said, laying back down. He focused his attention on the sky, getting lost in the stars.

“Jonghyun,” Key asked. “When did _you_ become such a romantic?”

“You know me,” Jonghyun replied, laying back down as well. “I’m full of surprises.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello guys!
> 
> Yay! The boys are back together! I know this chapter was a bit short but I wanted to focus on Taemin's reunion with his friends. Things are going to get interesting again soon. We're nearing the end of the fanfic, guys. I hope you're still hanging on!
> 
> Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Thank you so much for reading! I'll see you next week! :)


	18. Chapter 18

Naeun and Minho exchanged a high five after Literature class on Monday. Ms. Song had just posted their grades and they got an A+. 

“Man, I’ve never gotten a grade that high in Literature before!” Minho said as they walked down the hallway. 

“See? Doing a monologue was totally worth it.” said Naeun. “Even if you did need to borrow Key’s tracksuit and wear a scarf in this weather.”

“Yes, I know. You were right.” Minho slightly bumped her shoulder.

Naeun smiled but didn’t reply. After hearing about the rumors last week, she tried keeping her head held high but it kept gnawing away at the back of her mind.

“Ming?” she said. “Can I ask you something?”

“Yeah. What is it?”

“Have you heard any… umm… rumors about me lately?”

“Oh…” Minho looked down at his feet. “Y-Yeah…”

“I’m afraid to ask but what exactly have you heard?”

“Are you sure you want to know?”

“Yes.”

“Well… The rumors are stupid, really. They’re… umm… Well, people are saying that you’re kind of… trying to date me or my friends… Like, maybe you just used Taemin to get to us. To be honest, there’s a lot of variations of these rumors…”

“Oh, I see…” Naeun frowned. “Is it true that you and Taemin fought over me?”

“Well, it’s true that we fought. But it wasn’t really about you. He was just being an idiot.”

“Are you guys still in a fight?”

“No, we’re good now. We fixed things last Friday.”

“Ah, that’s good then…”

“Hey, don’t worry too much about the rumors, okay? People are just being stupid. We know you’re not like that. I can promise you that if anybody asks, we’ll make sure to set the record straight.”

“Thank you, Minho.”

“And hey, if you ever need anyone to talk to, we’re here.”

Naeun looked up at him and smiled. “That really means a lot. Thank you again.”

They reached Naeun’s next class.

“Hey, Naeun?” Minho said. “Can I ask you for a favor?”

“Sure. What is it?”

“I’ll tell you later, okay?” Minho said, starting to walk away. “I’ll meet you at your locker at dismissal.”

Naeun nodded and waved goodbye. 

_Hmm… I wonder what’s on his mind…_

~*~

When the clock struck three, Naeun was already at her locker, waiting for Minho to come. Her friends surrounded her, waiting to see what the boy wanted too. 

“What do you think he’s going to ask?” Rosé said.

“I really have no idea,” Naeun answered. “I mean… I don’t remember owing him anything?”

“Just don’t do it if it’s weird, okay?” Chaeyoung said. 

“Yeah, don’t worry. I can handle Minho.”

“Hey, Naeun!” Minho interrupted. “Hey, guys!”

They greeted him with smiles and small waves.

“Hey, Ming.” Naeun said, closing her locker. “So what kind of favor did you want?”

“Don’t be mad, okay?”

“What? Why would I be mad?”

Suddenly, Naeun saw Taemin walking towards them. He stood beside Minho and gave her a sincere smile. Rosé, Chaeyoung, and Eunji glared daggers at the two boys.

“Oh…” Naeun said. “Hi, Taemin…”

“Hi…” he replied with a nod.

“So…” Minho said, clearing the awkward air between the two. “About that favor. I was going to ask you, Naeun, if you would _please_ let Taemin walk you home?”

“But Ming-”

“ _Please?_ He really does have a lot to say that I think you should hear. Just this once, for me?”

Minho showed her his best puppy dog eyes with a matching pout. With anybody else, it would have worked in a second, but Naeun and her friends just groaned and rolled their eyes.

Naeun sighed. “Okay, fine. I’ll do it for _you_.” She made sure to emphasize that this was for Minho, _not_ Taemin. She faced the latter and gave him a polite smile. “Okay. Let’s go, Taemin.”

The four watched as Taemin and Naeun walked away.

“Thank you, Naeun!” Minho called. Naeun gestured goodbye as they exited the school.

When he faced back, the three girls were giving him dirty looks.

“Bold move, Choi.” Eunji said. “You know if he tries anything funny, it’s _your_ head on the chopping block, right?”

“Don’t worry! It’ll be fine. I can vouch for Taemin.”

Minho grinned confidently to hide his nerves. 

_Lee Taemin_ , he thought. _You better not screw this up._

~*~

“So…” Naeun said, staring at the ground as she walked. “What did you want to talk about? I mean, it must be important if you had to get Minho to ask me.”

“Well, if I asked you myself, I knew you wouldn’t agree.” Taemin answered. “I just… I was hoping you’d give me another chance to explain myself…”

“Okay… I’m listening…”

“Please be patient with me because this is kind of a long story.”

Naeun nodded.

“Back when we were in middle school, I used to date a lot of girls too. But things were different at that time. Sometimes, girls would confess to me and other times, I’d ask girls out myself. Then, we’d start dating. Everything would go great at first, but then later on, the girls would start acting weird…”

“Weird, how?”

“They would suddenly be distant and aloof. When we’d go on dates, they would act like they didn’t want to be there.”

“So what was the reason?”

“That’s the worst part. It turns out, they were only using me to get closer to my friends. Behind my back, they would confess to them…”

Naeun looked at Taemin and saw so much sadness in his eyes. At that moment, she forgot her anger and pitied him. 

“Oh… I see… Did your friends ever-”

“No. They never said yes. They’re good guys and they would always tell me when my girlfriends confessed to them.”

“So what did you do?”

“Well, at first, I would pretend not to know. The girl would either drift away or pretend like nothing happened and go back to me. So, obviously, that felt horrible. I felt like a back-up plan - never a first choice. Only a means to an end.”

“Then what happened?”

“Well, I would just break up with the girl.”

“Did you ever tell them that you knew what they did?”

“Sometimes, if they tried making a scene... You know what the stupid part was?”

“What?”

“It’s that every time I started dating again, I hoped it would be different…”

“That’s not stupid at all…”

“Maybe.. I don’t know.... Nevertheless, I grew tired of it. That’s why I changed. I changed into what I hated the most.”

“That’s why you became a playboy?”

“Yes… It was wrong. I knew that, but I was just so spiteful. Those girls… They just made me feel like I wasn’t good enough. So I decided to take it out on others. I told myself that if they were going to make me feel that way, then I would beat them to it. It was their turn to feel like they weren’t enough.”

“Oh… I had no idea…”

“It’s okay. Nobody else knows except my friends. But you know, things changed after a while.”

“What happened?”

“ _You_ happened.”

Taemin gazed at her with the most sincere look in his eyes. Naeun felt her heart beating faster.

“You… changed everything. You changed _me_. You were the first girl who actually made me feel like I was genuinely loved - like I was finally enough.”

“Oh…” Naeun said. “Taemin, I-I don’t know what to say…”

“You don’t have to say anything. May I continue?”

Naeun nodded.

“I know I’ve already said this before but I really am sorry. I’m sorry I thought you were just like those other girls. I’m sorry I blamed you for what they did to me. I know that my apology isn’t enough but I promise I’ll do everything I can to make it up to you.”

They arrived at Naeun’s front yard. Taemin faced her and gently held her hands. She looked up at him as he tucked a lock of her hair behind her ear.

“I… I love you, Naeun… And if you’d let me, I’d like to have another chance to show you that…”

Naeun sighed. She motioned for him to come and sit with her on the bench of their front porch. Their hands remained interlocked and their hearts were beating fast.

“Taemin…” Naeun looked into his eyes. He looked so vulnerable and hopeful, which made her heart hurt more than it already did. “I… I love you too… But I’m afraid this is getting too difficult for me.”

Tears slowly formed in Naeun’s eyes and started to flow down her cheeks. 

“You have no idea how hurt I was when we ‘broke up.’” She said. “You were the first boy I’ve ever opened up to like that. You were the first one I’ve ever let in. I know it may seem like I’m over it, but I’m not. I think about you all the time. I miss you so much, especially whenever I walk home alone. But whenever I think about you, I keep remembering how you blew me off just because I asked you what we were.”

Taemin held Naeun’s cheek, gently wiping her tears away with his thumb. “I know. I know. Naeun, I’m so sorry…”

“And… And I don’t know if you know about this but now there are rumors about me going around at school. People are starting to accuse me of doing what your past girlfriends did to you. I hear them talking in the hallway - people criticizing every little interaction I have with you and your friends. I can’t even walk down the hall with Minho without people giving me strange looks and whispers.”

“Oh God, I knew this was going to happen… I’m so sorry. Naeun, I’ll fix it. I’ll fix everything, I promise…”

“But that’s the thing, Taemin… All of this is just too much for me. I don’t think I can handle any more hurt. I know you’re saying you’ll make up for it but I… I’m just too scared now.”

Taemin was slightly taken aback. “W-What are you saying, Naeun?”

Naeun was able to stop crying, at least for the moment. She wiped the remnants of her tears with her hands. 

“I’m saying we can fix things, but just as friends.” she said.

“W-What does that mean?”

“It means I still care about you, Taemin. I care about you _a lot_. But I can’t trust you with my heart anymore…”

Naeun stood up and unlocked their front door. Taemin stopped her before she closed it.

“Naeun, please… Please give me another shot…”

Naeun could feel Taemin’s heart shattering into a million pieces at her feet, but hers was already broken weeks ago by the very boy in front of her. 

“I’m sorry, Taemin. This is just the way it has to be…”

With that, Naeun shut the door. Taemin tried his best not to cry as he walked across the street, into his own house. _I did my best. But is this it? Is this the end of the line?_

He lay on his bed and buried his face on his pillow. He stayed like that until he heard a knock on the door.

“Come in,” he said, the pillow muffling his voice. 

“Taemin?” Mrs. Lee said. “Is everything alright?”

Taemin rolled over to face his mom. “Not really…”

“Do you want to share?”

“Maybe later...”

“Alright. Anyway, I was cleaning the storage room a while ago and I found this. I think it may have been yours when you were younger.”

His mother carried an old blue shoebox. The cardboard was creased and discolored but still strong enough to hold the contents. Taemin sat up and put the box on his lap. 

“I’ll call you when it’s dinner time, okay? And maybe you can tell me what happened?” Mrs. Lee said.

“Sure, Mom. Thanks.”

When his mother left the room, Taemin took off the lid of the box and started to inspect its contents. There were some trading cards, a set of jacks, marbles, and other small toys. Assuming they were all just knick-knacks from his childhood, he was about to put the lid back on when he saw a glint of silver at the bottom. When he dug through the contents, he saw it. It was a bit worn and it had lost a bit of its sheen but other than that, it was just as he remembered it - the long silver ribbon, the silver ovals, and his and Naeun’s names written on each one in crooked child-like handwriting. It was the dog tag that Naeun made for him - the one that made him her protector, her soldier. 

Taemin clutched the necklace tightly in his hand. He remembered that day like it was yesterday. It was the day he lost her, and he’ll be damned if he let himself lose her again now. Despite their conversation earlier, that necklace gave him the resolve he needed to win her back. He grabbed his phone and started texting in their group chat.

_Guys, I need your help. It’s about Naeun…_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone!
> 
> Well, that was kind of sad, wasn't it? Is this really it? Is it the end of Taemin and Naeun? Will Minho's head be on the chopping block? 
> 
> I don't know. Will we find out next week? Maybe... :)
> 
> Again, we're almost at the end. I hope you're still with me and that you enjoyed this chapter! Thank you so much for reading! I'll see you next week! :)


	19. Chapter 19

_Tuesday afternoon..._

“You want me to what?” said Jonghyun

The five boys were in the Music Room, gathered around Jonghyun. It was Taemin who called this meeting but none of them knew why.

“I want you to help me write a song for Naeun.” Taemin said.

“You _do_ realize how much work that is, right?” Jonghyun replied. “I mean… it doesn’t just take time. It needs inspiration too.”

“That’s why I’ll be here. Two heads are better than one, after all.”

“When exactly did you come up with this plan?” Key said.

“Well, right after I talked to Naeun yesterday.”

“How did that go by the way?” Minho said. “Please tell me you didn’t screw it up. Eunji will hunt me down if you did.”

“Well, she rejected me…” Taemin said. 

“Really? But I thought you were going to tell her _everything_?” 

“I did! I think she understood. She did say we could still fix things, but just as _friends_.”

“You got friendzoned?” Key said. “Wow, that’s a difficult place to be in. How did you react?”

“I asked her for another chance, but she said ‘this is just the way it has to be.’”

The five boys sighed.

“So what’s your plan now?” Onew asked.

“Well, if Jjong agrees, he can help me write a song which I can sing for her during the Music Showcase.”

“Taemin, sign-ups for the showcase ended last week.”

“That’s where you come in, Onew.” Onew gave Taemin a puzzled look. “I was hoping maybe you can pull some strings and squeeze me in?”

Onew groaned. “Duuuuude…”

Taemin gave him his most lovable smile. “Please? I don’t even have to join the competition itself. Maybe I can do an intermission song right after Jonghyun.”

Onew pouted and sighed. “ _Fine._ I’ll adjust the program, but you owe me big time. You’re buying me lunch for the next month.”

“That’s fair.” Taemin said. “So Jonghyun, can you help your boy out?”

Jonghyun smiled. “Okay, I’ll help you. But you have to be really willing to work on this with me, okay? I don’t want to do all the work, even if I _am_ a musical genius.”

“Yes, yes, oh Magnificent One.” Taemin said. “Just tell me when and where and I’ll be there.”

“What about me?” asked MInho. “Am I supposed to do anything?”

“Umm…This is probably going to be hard…” Taemin replied.

“What is it?” Minho hesitated. 

“I need you to convince Naeun and her friends to attend the showcase and actually watch me sing.”

“That shouldn’t be too hard since Rosé is performing.” Jonghyun added. 

“Yeah, but what if she just watches her and leaves? Minho, I need you to make sure she watches _me_. Maybe you can ask her friends for help too.”

Minho shook his head reluctantly. “I already have a strike one with the ‘favor’ I asked of her yesterday. You know her friends are going to kill me if this doesn’t work out, right?”

“Okay, if that happens, you can tell them it was all _my_ fault and I just forced you guys to help me. Besides, girls like you. You’re handsome and you know it.”

“That’s true…” Minho said. “Ugh, fine. But you better not mess this up.”

“I won’t. I promise.” Taemin turned to face everyone else. “I’m really grateful to have you guys here, helping me out. This is...This is probably my _last_ chance with Naeun. I want to make this as perfect as possible.”

“I know this sounds so cliché, but I really think you can do it, Taemin.” Key said. “I really believe you can win her back, especially with this grand gesture.”

Taemin turned to him with a confused smile. “Wow, is the Almighty Kim Kibum actually giving me a _compliment_?”

Key rolled his eyes and switched back to his diva demeanor. “Ugh, whatever. Enjoy it because that’s the last one you’ll ever hear from me.”

Taemin was so happy. He was so glad to have his friends here with him. He missed smiling and laughing with them. It gave him comfort that no matter what, they’ll always have his back.

“Dirori!” Key interrupted his thoughts. “Why wasn’t _I_ given an assignment?”

Taemin shrugged and gave him a cheeky smile. “...Moral support?”

~*~

_Wednesday night…_

Minho had been staring at his phone for about an hour now. He had Chaeyoung’s Facebook profile on his screen and his finger had been hovering on the “Message” button. When he finally formed a proper message in his head, he finally tapped it. 

_Hi Chaeyoung! It’s Choi Minho. You know, Taemin and Naeun’s friend. I know we’re not that close but I was wondering if I could ask you for a favor. It’s about the two of them._

He thought it would take a while before she would reply but he immediately saw the small bubble appear below his message. Then he saw the ellipses indicating that she was typing.

_Yes, I remember you, Minho. What favor is it?_

_Actually, I’m asking you, Eunji, and Rosé. Taemin is preparing a grand gesture for her during the showcase and we were hoping that you can convince Naeun to stay and watch his performance. I know you don’t like him at the moment, but please give him another chance. If this doesn’t work out, I promise you that he won’t bother Naeun or any of you ever again._

_Hmm… I assume we’ll have to keep this a secret from Naeun until it actually happens?_

_Yes, please._

_I’ll think about it and tell the girls. I’ll get back to you ASAP._

_Okay. Thank you, Chaeyoung. :)_

~*~

By some miracle, Jonghyun and Taemin were able to finish the song by Thursday afternoon. After some more tweaking and polishing, they rehearsed it and it came out perfectly. 

“Man, that was so great,” Taemin said, unable to stop smiling. “Thank you so much for your help, Jjong. You really _are_ a great musician.”

“Oh, come on. There’s no need to flatter me.” Jonghyun replied, 

“I’m telling the truth,” Taemin said. “I know I don't say it enough but you really are one of the most talented people I know.”

“Thank you,” Jonghyun said, truly touched by his friend’s kind words. “We can rehearse this again tomorrow afternoon, then get a good night’s sleep and relax the whole morning.”

“Don’t you think we need to rehearse again on Saturday?”

“No. By that time, you need to be relaxed and calm. You might end up panicking right before the show and we can’t have that.”

“Okay, I trust you.”

After switching off the keyboard and returning the stools, they packed up and left the Music Room. Taemin stayed silent as they walked through the halls. Jonghyun leaned his elbow on the younger boy’s shoulder.

“Hey, it’ll be great, okay?” he said. “She’ll love it. “

Taemin smiled. “I really hope she will.”

“You know, you should join the Music Club. You have a really good voice.”

“Thank you,” Taemin chuckled. “But I think Kai might miss me too much.”

~*~

It was Friday night and Naeun and her friends spent it at the mall shopping for clothes. 

“Why are we doing this again?” said Naeun.

“So we can look good tomorrow at the fair,” Chaeyoung replied. 

“Why can’t we look good in clothes we already have?” 

“Because boys from _other_ schools will be there,” Eunji said. “I don’t know about you guys but I’m tired of the boys at our school.”

“Plus,” Rosé added. “I need a really nice outfit for my performance.”

“Well,” said Chaeyoung, holding up a long bohemian-style dress. “I think you should wear a nice flowy long dress like this. We don’t want the audience looking up at your skirt while you’re playing your guitar.”

“Point taken.” Rosé took the dress from her and made her way to the fitting room. 

“What about this for me, guys?”

Naeun held up a short sleeveless dark blue dress with a small flower print.

“It’s cute,” said Eunji. “A summer-chic look.”

“Yeah,” said Chaeyoung. “Do you have a brown belt and sandals to go with it?”

“I can find some. I’ll be back,” Naeun left the other two to ask the saleswoman about what else she needed.

While the other two, Chaeyoung whispered to Eunji. 

“Okay, we got her here and she’s buying clothes. She’s already going to the school fair, but how can we convince her to stay until Taemin performs?”

“Guys,” said Rosé, dressed in a cream colored dress with small boho patterns along the hem and the sleeves. “What do you think?”

Chaeyoung and Eunji smiled when they saw her. 

“Girl, you look _amazing_!”

“Yeah! I can already see you winning!”

“Chae, don’t jinx it!” Rosé joked. “Okay, I’m getting this then.”

After Rosé left the changing room, they waited for Naeun to come back. There was silence among the three of them, but they were all thinking of the same thing.

“When is Taemin performing again?” Eunji asked.

“During intermission,” answered Chaeyoung. “Right after Jonghyun.”

“I’ve got it!” Rosé said. “Well, she knows Jonghyun is my friend and she already had a preview of what he’ll be performing during intermission. Plus, they’re also kind of friends..?”

“And…?” Chaeyoung asked. 

Rosé answered. “Okay, my point is, we can just tell her to support Jjong and before you know it, Taemin will be performing and she’ll be there to watch.”

“But what if she walks away as soon as he sees Taemin?” Eunji asked.

The other two sighed. They couldn’t think of surefire ways to make Naeun stay and watch Taemin.

“To be honest,” Chaeyoung said. “I think we’ll have to play this by ear. We’ll just have to wait and see…”

“See what?”

The three girls jumped at Naeun’s voice behind them. She was carrying the blue dress and the brown belt and sandals that Chaeyoung suggested.

“Uhhh… S-See you in that outfit!” Eunji stuttered.

“Yes! We have to see how good you look!” Rosé continued. 

“Oh, okay,” said Naeun, heading to the fitting rooms. “Be right back!”

Rosé put her hand on Chaeyoung’s shoulder. “So... Play it by ear?”

“Yeah,” Chaeyoung smiled at her friend. “Rosé, don’t worry about this. Just focus on your performance. I’m sure you’ll do great. You always do.”

“I mean,” Eunji added. “We’ll be handling this but we’ll still be cheering you on for sure!”

“Thanks, guys.” Rosé said. “But I hope Naeun gets her happy ending too...”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone!
> 
> So it looks like Taemin has this all planned out. Is it going to work this time? Also, I don't know about you guys but I'm hella excited for the school fair. I mean, I already know what's going to happen but I can't wait to share it with you. :)
> 
> Thank you so much for reading! I'll see you next week! :)


	20. Chapter 20

Finally, it was the day of the school fair. The workers and the concessionaires were working tirelessly during the entire morning to set their booths up, whether it be knick-knacks, games or food. By late afternoon, the school yard was unrecognizable. It was full of white tents with multi-colored string lights zigzagging across them. The air was filled with scents of caramel and cinnamon from the food booths. Lastly, the approaching sunset made for a picturesque scene before letting the glow from the string lights take its place.

When Naeun and her friends arrived, their eyes sparkled at the site of the fair. 

“Wow...” she said, amazed at the sight. “Are _all_ your school fairs like _this_?”

“Do you like it?” said a male voice beside her which made her jump.

“Oh, it’s you, Onew,” Naeun said. “You startled m-”

Naeun looked at the boy up and down. This wasn’t the usual Onew who wore baggy t-shirts, collared shirts, and shorts to school. The man in front of her was wearing a crisp blue and white patterned button-down shirt with sleeves rolled up to his elbows, combined with ripped black jeans, and black and white sneakers. On top of that, his brown hair that was usually combed with his bangs down was now styled up and coiffed to the side.

“Woooow…” Naeun said, smiling at him. “You sure do clean up well, Onew.”

“Thank you,” he answered with his ever-so-charming smile. “You ladies don’t look so bad yourselves.”

They blushed and gave nods and smiles in return.

“So where are the rest of the guys?” Naeun asked.

“Hmm… Well, Key is probably going around, doing some unsupervised shopping. Minho is probably wasting his money on that basketball arcade game just to get his name at the top of the scoreboard. Jonghyun is preparing for the showcase and Taemin…is…” Onew paused, “ _Helping_ him… That reminds me. Rosé, call time is in forty-five minutes and the show will start thirty minutes after.”

“Got it!” she replied, slinging her guitar on her shoulder. “Looks like that gives us girls time to enjoy the fair first.”

“And what are you going to do?” Naeun asked Onew.

“I’m going to make my rounds. I may look dressed up but I still have to make sure that everything is running smoothly.”

“Such a workaholic…” Naeun shook her head jokingly. 

“Yes, but a _handsome_ workaholic. Don’t fall in love with me now.” Onew answered, giving a wink before leaving the girls.

“Seriously,” said Chaeyoung, when Onew was out of earshot. “How does that guy _not_ have a girlfriend yet?”

~*~

“Okay, everyone,” Hodong said, gathering everyone’s attention backstage “The show will start in about ten minutes so make sure you’re all prepared for your act. Also, I want everyone who’s _not_ performing out by then.”

Taemin peeked out from the backstage to take a look at the crowd. 

“Wow…” he said, taking a deep breath. “It’s pretty packed out there.”

“Are you nervous?” Key said. “You do this like _every_ year.”

“Yeah, but I used to dance. It’s the first time that I’m actually trying something new.”

“It’ll be fine. I’ve heard that you and Jonghyun have been practicing a lot so I’m sure it’ll be okay. 

“Ten minutes, guys!” a boy in a school uniform repeated. 

“Is that guy the MC for the show?” Taemin asked.

“Yup,” Key answered. “That’s Kim Heechul. He’s a senior.”

Heechul was a tall boy with messy lack hair. Oddly enough, he was wearing a school uniform - a white button-down shirt under a dark blue sweater vest, grey pants, and white sneakers. 

“... Isn’t it kind of weird to have an MC wear a school uniform when our school doesn't actually have one?” Taemin whispered to Key.

“You think _that’s_ bad?” Key answered. “Take a look at Hodong.”

Principal Kang Hodong was wearing the same uniform as Heechul, except with a black cape over it and a black beret. Taemin almost laughed out loud at the sight of him.

“Oh my god,” he snickered. “Why is he wearing _that_?”

“You don’t know?” Key said, trying not to laugh. “He’s Heechul’s co-MC. They’ll be handling the program together.”

“But the point of the fair is to get _more_ students, not _scare_ them away.”

“Wait! Speaking of looks...” said Key. “Let me check if you’re up to par.”

Key looked at his friend up and down. His black hair was styled up messily in a stylish bad boy look. He was wearing a plain white button-down shirt with black pants and black combat boots. To top it all off, he wore _the necklace_.

Key nodded and gave his friend the thumbs up. “Okay, you’re all set. By the way, here’s what you asked me to buy earlier.”

Key handed him a brown paper bag. Taemin looked inside and smiled.

“Great! How much do I owe you?”

“Don’t worry about it. I got it.”

Key waved goodbye and started to walk away. “Kill it out there, okay?”

“I’ll do my best. Thanks, Key!”

The blonde boy turned his head and smiled. “Moral support, remember?”

~*~

“Okay, everybody.” Heechul said, addressing the audience. “Now, I’ve already seen our next performer backstage, and I’ve got to say, she looks like an angel.”

“Ahhh..” answered Hodong. “Well, she must be very beautiful then. Let’s see if she sings like an angel too! Give it up for Rosé!”

The crowd cheered and clapped as Rosé stepped onstage, took her seat, and positioned her guitar.

“Hi everyone,” she greeted. “This song is called ‘Stay’ and it goes a little something like this...”

Meanwhile, in the crowd, the three girls were hyping up the rest of the audience. Soon, they were all clapping along and singing with Rosé. 

The audience chorused. _Lalalalalala Lalalalalala Lalalalalala..._

Rosé strummed the last chord on her guitar. 

_I don't expect a lot right now  
Just stay with me…_

Rosé exhaled and smiled at the audience. The crowd was now cheering and applauding her. “Thank you, guys. Have a great night!” 

She bowed and exited the stage. As she climbed down the steps, she was finally able to breathe and calm her throbbing heart. Jonghyun and Taemin saw her and rushed over.

“Hey…” Jonghyun said, putting a hand on her shoulder. “You okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine. I was just really nervous.” Rosé answered. “I know I do this every year, but it never gets easier.”

“You did great out there,” Taemin said, handing her a bottle of water. “All eyes and ears were on you.”

“Thank you…” Rosé smiled. She drank from the bottle and let out a deep breath. “I'm glad that's over. I think I’m going to go out and watch the show up front.”

“What?” Jonghyun said with a fake pout. “You’re not going to cheer for me?”

“Jjong, you know I’m always cheering for you,” Rosé said, sticking her tongue out at Jonghyun. 

She put her guitar back in its case and slung it over her shoulder.

“Good luck out there, guys,” she said, making her way towards the exit. “Especially _you_ , Taemin!”

~*~

“Are you guys still with us?” Heechul told the audience. “You want to hear more, right?”

The audience cheered as loudly as they did when the show started. 

“That’s great news then!” said Hodong. “Now we have one last performer before we go to intermission! Let’s welcome Jae to the stage!”

Taemin watched as the tall lanky boy prepared to perform. 

“Hi, guys. I’m Jae and this is a song I wrote. It’s called Better Man, and… I hope you’ll like it.”

Jae started playing a soft melody on his guitar and sang with such a smooth calming voice. 

“You’re impressed, aren’t you?” Jonghyun said from behind Taemin, who was watching intently.

“Oh,” Taemin said, turning back. “Yeah, I am. I don’t think I’ve seen him around. Is he in the Music Club too?”

“He was before he formed a band with his friends. He’s a junior. His name is Park Jaehyung, but he goes by Jae.”

_I promise I can be  
Everything you ever wanted  
If you give me just one chance  
To show you that I'm worth it..._

Taemin took a deep breath, exhaled, and paced around. Jonghyun was warming up his voice when he noticed Taemin fidgeting. 

“Hey…” Jonghyun said. “You’ll be okay, okay? Remember why you’re doing this. Remember _who_ you’re doing this for.”

“Yeah. I’ll really give it my all.”

“That’s good then. There’s the Taemin I know.”

_You make me wanna stand up tall  
Clean up my act  
Do what is right and be a better man…_

Soon, they heard the audience cheering and saw Jae leaving the stage on the other side.

“Thank you, Jae! Wasn’t that such a romantic song?” Hodong said. 

“It really was.” said Heechul. “I bet he made all the girls in the audience swoon!” 

“Well, it’s time for intermission so thankfully, they can catch their breaths.”

“Oh, but Hodong, aren’t our intermission performers swoon-worthy as well?”

“Ah, that’s a good question, Heechul. Let’s let the audience be the judge! Everybody, let’s welcome Jonghyun to the stage!”

Jonghyun shrugged and smiled. “Well, I’m up! See you in a while, lover boy!”

~*~

When Rosé left the backstage, she made her way around the audience until she found her friends. 

“Hey guys!” she said. “How was it?”

Eunji squealed. “Yaaass! Queen!”

“You were so great out there!” Chaeyoung said as she hugged her friend.

“I thought the audience was falling asleep. You really think so?”

“Of course!” Naeun answered. “You were even better than when you first showed me the song!”

“Thank you! Oh, and thank you for getting the audience to sing and clap with me! “

“Don’t worry,” said Eunji. “We got your back, girl!!”

“Thank you and thank God that's over. I was so nervous backstage. I didn’t even get to eat!” Rosé said.

“We figured.” Naeun said. “Here, we got you some churros with chocolate dip.”

“Ooohhh yummy! Thank you!”

“So, do you want to go around or do you want to stay and watch?”

Rosé subtly exchanged knowing glances with Eunji and Chaeyoung. 

“I...think I want to stay.” Rosé said. “I don’t want to miss Jjong. I don’t know how many more people are playing before intermission.”

“Alright. Let’s stay then.”

~*~

_“Everybody, let’s welcome Jonghyun to the stage!”_

Jonghyun walked confidently to the center of the stage and smiled at the audience.

“Hey, everyone! Having a good time? Here’s a new song I wrote. It’s called ‘Beautiful Tonight.’”

He gestured for his keyboardist to start and soon, he completely captured the audience’s attention with his ballad.

“Hey, guys!” Minho said, approaching the four girls. “Came to watch Jjong?”

“And me!” waved Rosé.

“I saw you out there,” Key said. “You were really good.”

Key held out his hand to the three girls. “I don’t think we’ve met. I’m Key, Taemin’s friend.”

“Rosé.” she replied, shaking his hand.

“Chaeyoung.”

“Eunji.” 

Naeun noticed Key and Eunji widen their smiles and let their handshake linger a bit longer than the other two. 

“Enjoying the fair?” Onew asked, walking over to them with a confident smile.

“Yeah, dude.” Minho said, putting his arms around Onew’s shoulders. “You’ve really outdone yourself this time.”

“Even if you couldn’t get your name at the top of the scoreboard at that basketball game?” Key chuckled. 

Onew sighed. “Oh come on, Minho. I mean, the prizes aren’t even that great, but at least you won that soccer ball plushie.”

“Okay, _first of all_ , that game was _rigged_. Second, it’s not about the prizes. It’s a matter of pride!”

_Oh beautiful tonight,  
Oh say oh say, oh say oh say_

The four girls were trying not to laugh as the boys bickered.

“You better thank God that there isn’t a dunk tank here or you would be drowning right now.” Key said snarkily.

“As a matter of fact, there _is_ a dunk tank here. I bet I can get you soaked faster than you can say ‘Dirori!’” Minho taunted.

“Okay, you’re on!”

“Fine! We’re heading straight there after we watch Jonghyun and Taemin-”

_Oh beautiful tonight,  
Oh say oh say, oh say oh say_

Minho covered his mouth with his hands as he realized what he just said. _Oh, shit_. They all turned towards him - five glares and one curious look.

“What did you say?” Naeun asked, looking right into Minho’s guilty eyes.

_Oh beautiful tonight,  
Oh say oh say, oh say oh say_

“H-Hey look!” Onew pointed at Jonghyun on stage, attempting to distract Naeun. “Jonghyun’s using his kazoo!”

Minho stuttered. “N-Nothing! I was just...just…”

“Just what?”

_Oh beautiful tonight, yeah_

Naeun looked at everyone, hoping to find some answers. They all avoided her glare.

“What’s going on?” she said. “You _all_ know, don’t you?”

“Okay, okay,” Chaeyoung said. “The cat’s out of the bag. Taemin’s performing after Jonghyun and he asked us… _all of us_ to make sure you’ll watch him.”

“Why would I want to watch him?”

“Because it’s all for _you_.” Onew said, stepping forward. 

“What do you mean?”

“Please, just trust us.” Minho said. “This _really_ will be the last time. If you reject him again, he’ll never _ever_ bother you again. I promise.”

Naeun tried to get herself together. She felt shocked, curious, angry, and overall confused. 

“Please, Naeun.” Rosé said, putting a reassuring hand on her friend’s shoulder. “He wouldn’t have asked us if he weren’t that desperate. Just one more time, please?”

Naeun closed her eyes and sighed. She looked around at the pleading faces of her friends.

“Fine… This is the _last_ time, okay?” she said, crossing her arms on her chest.

Everyone nodded and they turned their attention back to the stage. The rest of the audience was clapping for Jonghyun and they joined in.

“Thanks, guys! I’m glad you liked it!” Jonghyun said. “Now for this next number, I’ll be playing the keyboard instead. You probably know this next performer by his awesome dancing skills. But tonight, he’s going to try something a little different. Please welcome, Lee Taemin!”

When Taemin stepped onstage, Jonghyun passed him the mic and took his seat in front of the keyboard. 

“H-Hi everyone,” Taemin spoke nervously. “You’re probably not used to this, but, umm, I’m going to try singing tonight. This is an original song that me and Jonghyun wrote, and it’s called ‘Soldier.’ Son Naeun, I hope you’re listening. This is for you…”

Jonghyun started pressing the keys and Taemin began singing his serenade. 

_The path I try to go back is a maze  
The wind that caresses my cheek goes up  
I open my arms, it doesn't matter  
I need an angel's hand_

Naeun watched intently as the boy sang for her. Before she realized it, she found herself falling in love with him all over again. 

_Cause a devil kissed me kissed me  
Why'd you never miss me miss me  
Yeah the devil kissed me kissed me  
Kissed me_

“Th-That’s for me?” she said, turning back to her friends. They nodded and smiled warmly in return. 

_If I can wash away my sins  
I will get on my knees right now  
Even if you choke me  
Even if you destroy my body_

Tears started forming in Naeun’s eyes. She never expected this, especially from Taemin. She had rejected him so many times but here he was, singing on stage, wearing his heart on his sleeve, and it was all for _her_.

_I still haven't been able to fix our misunderstanding  
I need your forgiveness_

Chaeyoung gave Naeun’s arm a comforting squeeze. She wiped away the tears that were rolling down her friend’s cheeks.

“What are you waiting for?” she said. “Go over there…”

_Yeah I know you miss me miss me  
Baby give you kiss me kiss me  
Yeah I know you miss me miss me  
Miss me_

Naeun quickly made her way to the front, right across the stage. 

“Excuse me… Excuse me…” she nudged people aside. “I’m sorry… I really need to get to the front… Excuse me…”

She heard insults and curses directed towards her as she passed around the people, but she didn’t care. They didn’t matter now. Her attention was on Taemin and nothing else.

_There are painful memories in my heart  
I will never forget, in my loneliness  
The last image of you was so beautiful_

When she finally arrived in front, she watched Taemin sing his heart out. She started to cry tears of joy when she realized he was wearing _the necklace_. She waved her arms up to get his attention. When they finally locked eyes, Taemin smiled at her as he sang the last few words. 

_I want to be together with you until the end  
I kiss your lips  
Until I stop breathing  
Until the the sun rises above the world  
I wanted to protect you by my side  
I was born to be a soldier_

Seeing Naeun right there in front of him gave Taemin the strength he needed. He jumped off the stage and walked over to her. He held her hand and gazed into her teary brown eyes as he sang the last line. At that moment, the rest of the world disappeared. Nothing else mattered anymore. It was just Naeun and Taemin and right now, and that was all they needed.

_I was born to be a soldier, yeah…_


	21. Chapter 21

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys!
> 
> SURPRISE!!!!! I decided to post this chapter a day earlier as a reward for my readers. I want to thank all of you for all your love and support. It really meant a lot to me because this is the first fanfiction (not including one-shots) that I've written in years.
> 
> Well, this is it. It's the final chapter of this fanfiction. So without further ado, here's the finale of Soldier.

_I was born to be a soldier, yeah…_

As the song drew to a close, Taemin and Naeun pulled each other into a tight hug. As he took in the aroma of her strawberry-scented shampoo, he felt the dampness of her tears on his shirt.

“Hey…” he said. He looked at her and wiped away her tears. “No need to cry… I’m here…”

“Oh…” Naeun said, rubbing her eyes with her forearm. “No, no...These are happy tears.”

She held him tightly around his waist and pulled him into another hug. “Thank you…” she whispered. 

He held her close, his left arm around her waist and his right hand at the back of her head so that he could kiss her forehead. 

The sound of the audience clapping and cheering interrupted their reverie. When they looked around, they saw that the audience formed a wide circle around them to give them some space. Their friends were at the edge of that circle, clapping and cheering the loudest. Taemin and Naeun interlocked their hands and raised their arms over their heads in victory, which made the audience applaud even more. 

Taemin felt someone tap his shoulder and turned around to find Jonghyun smiling at him.

“Look, I hate to interrupt this ridiculously romantic moment but Taemin, I’m going to need that mic back,” he said.

After Taemin handed him the mic, Jonghyun gave him the paper bag he left backstage and winked at his friend.

“Okay, intermission is over, everyone!” Jonghyun said, addressing the crowd. “Let’s give these lovebirds some alone time, okay?”

As he returned to the back, Heechul and Hodong appeared back onstage. 

“Well, _that_ was something, wasn’t it?” Heechul said.

“Ahh, it reminds me of when I was young and in love…” Hodong replied, putting a hand on his heart.

“Hodong-ah, let’s go down memory lane another time because for now, the show must go on! So many heavenly voices have graced us with their presence tonight. As wonderful as that was, this time, we’ll see who’s got the moves in our dance category! Let’s welcome our first contestant to the stage. Everybody, give it up for Ryujin!”

As the circle of people closed in, Taemin and Naeun met up with their friends.

“So all of you really knew about this?” Naeun asked them again. Their friends smiled and nodded.

Naeun looked lovingly at Taemin. “You did all of this for me?”

“Yes!” Minho said, grinning and waving his arms in the air. “We helped!”

“Aww, you guys are so cute!” Chaeyoung said giddily.

“Yeah, you’re so sweet. It’s giving me a toothache,” Key said, smiling despite his words.

“What are you still doing here? Go and confess your undying love for each other already!” Rosé said, shooing them away. 

“But what about you guys?” asked Naeun. 

“It’s okay,” Eunji said. “We’ll just be here, watching the show and waiting for Rosé to win.”

“Don’t jinx it!” Rosé laughed, jokingly slapping Eunji’s arm.

“Yeah, and Key and I have a date with the dunk tank.” said Minho.

“I think I better tag along in case one of them tries to drown the other,” said Onew. “You two have fun.”

“Okay then,” Taemin said, not able to wipe the smile on his face. “Thank you, guys…For everything.”

They all smiled warmly at the couple in return.

“Just go already!” they teased.

With that, Taemin tugged at Naeun’s hand, which was interlocked with his, and led her away from the fair. He brought her to a bench under a tree - the tree where all the trouble started weeks ago.

“Why did you bring me here?” Naeun said, sitting down and keeping her hand entwined in Taemin’s. “You know we don’t have good memories under this tree.”

“Well, I thought we could replace them with good ones instead.” Taemin answered.

Suddenly, the two of them became shy again, like it was their first time being alone together in a romantic atmosphere. 

“So… Did you like it?” Taemin asked, playing with Naeun’s fingers. 

“You mean the song?” Naeun answered.

“Yeah…”

“Of course I did! No one has ever done anything that special for me before.”

“Really?”

“Not even close.”

“Well, I mean… You can thank Jonghyun too. He helped a lot.”

“I will, but I want to focus on us right now.”

Taemin put his arm on the back of the bench and faced her.

“So, there’s still an _us_?” he said.

“I want there to be…” said Naeun. “What about you?”

“Naeun, I wouldn’t have done all that if I didn’t. I got you something, by the way…”

Taemin brought out something from inside the paper bag. He revealed a plastic crown with leaves and big white flowers all over - just like the one she wore when they were kids, before she and her family moved away.

“May I, Princess?” asked Taemin. Naeun smiled and nodded. Taemin fixed her hair and gently placed the crown on her head.

When he sat back down, Naeun moved closer to him and held Taemin’s necklace.

“After all this time?” Naeun asked. “You kept it?”

“Yes… I have to admit that I forgot about it for a while. Then my mom found a box of my childhood toys, and there it was. It gave me the strength I needed to do to make today possible… Can I be serious for a moment?”

She nodded. “Go ahead.”

Taemin took a deep breath. “Naeun, I know I’ve hurt you a lot in the past. I know there were a lot of things I shouldn’t have said or done. I know it would take a lot for me to make it up to you…” 

Then, he held her hands in his. “If you really want me to stop and leave, then I will... But this is me telling you that… If you’ll have me, I will fight for you every single day for the rest of my life… I’ll protect you. I’ll make you smile. I’ll make sure that you know how much I love you everyday.” 

Naeun’s heart was pounding and she couldn’t remove the smile off her face. Tears started to form in her eyes again as she held his hands tighter.

“Hey…” Taemin said, wiping them away. “No more crying, remember?”

“Happy tears, Taemin…” Naeun replied with a laugh. “Very happy tears..”

Taemin chuckled as he cupped her face gently. “So… What do you say? Can I be your soldier?”

“Yes…and I love you too...” Naeun giggled and nodded vigorously. This time, Taemin was one who couldn’t stop smiling. 

When Naeun met Taemin’s gaze, it was like the rest of the world disappeared again. As they moved closer to each other, everything melted away, leaving nothing and no one else but them. When their lips finally met, there were sparks and electricity and fireworks. Taemin cupped her cheek a little tighter and Naeun held his shoulder to keep herself steady, their bodies almost completely flat against each other. They took it all in - Naeun’s cinnamon sugar taste, Taemin’s green apple scent, their touch tightening upon contact with the other’s body. It was like they were giving all of themselves, while the other took it and kept it safe in their hearts. 

When they let go, they were both dazed and breathless. As they sighed, they looked back at each other and smiled.

“That was…” Taemin said. “Wow…”

“Yeah…” Naeun answered, suddenly blushing. She held her cheeks in embarrassment. “I-I liked that…”

“I-I’ve been wanting to do that for some time now…”

“Really?”

Taemin nodded. “Yeah… What about you?”

Naeun said nothing and coyly smiled.

“You have, haven’t you?”

“I’m not saying anything,” she said, sticking her tongue out at him.

Taemin laughed and shook his head lovingly at her. He reached for the paper bag behind him and dug inside it again.

“Is that another gift?” Naeun asked curiously. 

“Yes, actually.” Taemin answered, presenting her with a small square box. “Open it.”

When Naeun removed the cover, she saw a bare silver bracelet that held one small charm. It was a dog tag with her and Taemin’s names on it.

“It’s… I-It’s a charm bracelet,” Taemin said, suddenly stumbling over his words. “I thought that maybe I can get you started with that dog tag.”

“I… I love it…”

“I got a matching dog tag too,” Taemin said, fishing a necklace from his pocket. “It also says our names on it. I’m sorry. I couldn’t think of anything more creative or romantic to put on them.”

“It’s okay. Only you and me is enough…”

Taemin smiled. “Are you talking about the dog tag or real life?”

“Both…” Naeun smirked and held out her right arm. “Can you help me put this on?”

Taemin nodded. He unclasped the bracelet and wrapped it around Naeun’s wrist. 

“Do you still wear the rosary bracelet that I gave you?”

Naeun held up her left wrist to show him the wooden beads encircling it. 

Taemin smiled as he fastened the charm bracelet. It rested loosely and comfortably on her. He then put on his new dog tag necklace to match with Naeun.

“Thank you, Taemin.” she said. “It’s beautiful…”

“You’re welcome. But you have to thank Key too because he technically paid for all of it.”

Naeun laughed along with Taemin. “I’ll remember that…”

“OoooooOOOooo…” a male voice interrupted. The couple turned to see Jonghyun and Minho walking over to them. 

“Taemin and Naeun sitting on a tree…” they sang and clapped. “K-I-S-S-I-N-G!”

“I hope we aren’t interrupting anything, especially the K-I-S-S-I-N-G.” Jonghyun said playfully.

“No, actually.” answered Taemin as he smirked. “We already did that a while ago…”

Naeun smacked him playfully with her small bag. “Taemin! Shh!”

“Minho, I see you’re awfully happy and….dry,” Taemin said. “Does this mean you won and Key got soaked?”

“YES!” Minho said, walking in circles while raising his arms in victory. “I drowned that diva!”

“Oh my god,” Naeun said. “Is he okay?”

“Okay, to be fair,” Taemin laughed. “He had it coming.”

“Yeah, don’t worry, Naeun. Your friend, Eunji, is taking care of him.”

Naeun gave a knowing smile and nodded. 

“So, what’s up?” Taemin asked the two boys. 

“Well, they’re giving out the awards soon so I thought maybe you guys would want to join us and support Rosé and stuff like that…” Jonghyun answered. “But hey, it’s cool if you guys want more alone time.”

Taemin looked at Naeun for approval and she nodded.

“No, we’ll join you,” Taemin said, smiling at Naeun and wrapping his arm around her waist. “We… kind of already made up anyway.”

Minho pointed to the couple. “So you… and you…? Are you finally boyfriend-girlfriend?”

“Are we?” Naeun asked Taemin.

Taemin smiled and nodded at Minho. “Yes, we definitely are.”

Minho cheered and fist-bumped Taemin. “Congratulations, bro!” Then, he hugged Naeun. “Welcome to the family, sister-in-law!”

When he let go, Minho started jogging his way back to the showcase area while dabbing and chanting Taemin’s and Naeun’s names.

“Is...Is he going to be okay?” Naeun said.

“Yeah, he’ll be fine,” Jonghyun said. “He’s just on a high because he won that dunk tank game. Plus he ate _way_ too much ice cream.”

“Speaking of food, I’m kind of getting hungry…” Taemin said. “I haven’t eaten since this morning.”

“Why don’t you two get some food first? We’ll meet you there, okay?” said Jjong, walking away and waving goodbye to the couple.

“So, what do you want to eat?” Naeun asked.

“Maybe a corndog… or fries… or churros… or all of the above,” he said, grinning evilly at his girlfriend.

Naeun raised her eyebrow at him. “What? What are you thinking of?”

“I’m thinking…” Taemin said, pulling away from Naeun. “Race you there! Loser buys food!”

“Hey, that’s not fair! I’m in sandals!”

Taemin shrugged and ran away. “See ya, Marcy!”

Naeun, both annoyed and amused, took off her sandals and followed her boyfriend. “ _Francesco!_ You come back here _right now!_ ”

When Naeun finally caught up with Taemin, he pulled her into a tight hug and gave her a quick kiss. They were both laughing and giggling in each other’s arms. Maybe it was because Taemin purposely slowed down and ran backwards to watch Naeun try to catch up. Maybe it was because Naeun ran barefoot all the way there while carrying her shoes. Or maybe, it was because everything was right again. 

Despite what happened that night, they couldn’t erase the hurtful things that happened in the past. All they could do now was try to piece their broken hearts back together. But this time, they had each other.

And that alone was enough.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello again!
> 
> I just want to say a few words to conclude this post. It was a joy for me to write this chapter because as I was writing this whole story, I became emotionally invested in the characters as well. I mean, I already knew what was going to happen but it just warmed my heart to actually type it in and read it in its final form. Also, I have newfound respect for authors who can confidently write kissing scenes and even smut because that part was the hardest to write for me. I was so unsure about how I can go about it without making it lewd or distasteful or anything like that. I had to research and read some examples online to see how I could do it. I hope I was able to write it well though. Feel free to let me know if I did or if I could have done better. I would really appreciate the constructive criticism. 
> 
> Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the final chapter! However, the story doesn't end here. There will still be an epilogue next week just to wrap things up. On the weekend after that, there will also be a Q&A/Easter Egg chapter. From now until the Q&A chapter, you can leave questions in the comments or PM me. You can ask me about anything as long as it's respectful and it's related to this fanfic or my writing. In the same chapter, I will also list down all the Easter Eggs I used in the story. Let's see if you spotted all of them! 
> 
> Again, I'm very grateful for all your love and support! Thank you so much for reading! I'll see you next week! :)


	22. Epilogue

“Attention, everyone!” Key said, standing up from his seat and raising his mango smoothie. “I’d like to say a few words before we eat.”

Everybody politely resisted grabbing a piece of freshly grilled meat from the platter and onto their plates and waited for Key to continue speaking.

“First of all, congratulations to Rosé for winning the showcase!”

They all clapped and smiled at the girl while she stood up and bowed. 

“Thank you! Thank you!” she said before sitting back down.

“Second,” continued Key. “Let’s give a round of applause for Jonghyun for yet another successful performance.”

Jonghyun raised his glass and nodded. “Thank you! I promise to be even more awesome than I already am next year!”

“Lastly, I want to bless our new and _official_ couple, Taemin and Naeun!” Key said, putting his glass down and clapping for them.

The two held hands and raised them above their heads. 

“Hear, hear!” they chorused and drank from their glasses.

“Okay, so can we eat now?” said Onew. “I don’t have a lot of self-control when it comes to food.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Key said, sitting back down. “Help yourselves.”

Immediately, the table was filled with a mess of arms and chopsticks weaving between each other to be able to get food on their plates. Soon, they were all making their own wraps from meat, lettuce leaves, rice, and several sauces and vegetables. 

“Thank you for inviting us, Key.” Rosé said between bites. 

“It’s no big deal.” He answered. “Nothing like a pool party to celebrate a successful night!”

All in all, the school fair was a success. Everything ran smoothly, which pleased Onew. Rosé won the showcase, and Taemin and Naeun got back together. It seemed like they all got their way - except Key, who got soaked in the dunk tank thanks to Minho.

“So, tonight was really fun!” said Chaeyoung to the three girls and five boys. “I think we should all hang out together more often.”

“How about a pool party tomorrow at my house?” Key said.

“Wow, really?” Naeun said. “I mean, we don’t want to impose.”

“No, it’s fine! I live to host parties. Besides, the boys are sleeping over for the whole weekend anyway.”

Jonghyun put his arms around Taemin. “You don’t mind if we keep Frank from you for one night, right?”

“Hey, only _Naeun_ gets to call me that!” Taemin said, gently pushing him.

“Oh, I have an idea!” Key said. “Why don’t you girls come for the party and sleepover on Sunday night?”

The four girls looked at each other. “Do you think that would be okay?” Chaeyoung said. 

“Well, I mean we’d have to ask permission first,” said Naeun. “But I think it’ll be fine.”

“Alright. Just let me know. We’re definitely having the pool party though.” Key said.

And that’s how the four girls and the five boys ended up eating samgyeopsal for lunch on Key’s outdoor dining table. 

“Your house is beautiful, by the way,” said Eunji. 

“Thank you,” answered Key. “Do you want a tour later?”

“Sure.”

“OooooOOOOooo…” teased Taemin and Naeun, making Key’s and Eunji’s cheeks turn red.

“Yah!” Key said. “You think that just because you’re a couple now, you can make fun of us single people?”

“Yes.” they said at the same time.

Minho started banging his fists on the table. “Fight! Fight! Fight! Fight!”

“Oh my God, no!” Onew said with a mouthful of rice and meat. He started piling more onto his plate. “No roughhousing near the food!”

Rosé raised her hand. “I propose a chicken fight. Each girl will pair up with a guy and the guy without a partner will be the referee.”

The boys looked at each other then simultaneously pointed at Minho.

“What?” he said. “That’s not fair! Why am _I_ always the referee?”

“Because if you play, someone might die.” Taemin answered. “Need I remind you of the Onew incident?”

“For the last time, _he didn’t die!_ He just lost consciousness for a bit...”

“Gee, I’m so touched by your kindness,” Onew said, taking a sip from his smoothie. 

“So do we have a fight or not?” Key said. 

“What do we get if we win?” Naeun asked.

“Hmm…” Jonghyun said. “The losers will buy dessert for all of us tomorrow.”

“Okay, we’re game!” Taemin said, giving Naeun a high-five. 

After waiting for the food to settle in, the chicken fights started. 

“Jjong! Keep steady!” Rosé said, as she grappled with Chaeyoung, who was on Onew’s shoulders.

“I’m trying! You’re heavier than you think!”

“Or maybe you’re weaker than you think, Jjong!” Onew teased, sticking his tongue out at him.

Rosé looked down at the boy carrying her. “Did you just call me _fat?_ ”

“No, that’s not what I meant! Wait, look out!”

With one final push, Chaeyoung tipped Rosé over, which led to Jonghyun falling underwater as well.

“Aaaand, that’s a win for Chaeyoung and Onew!” Minho said. “Next up, we have Key and Eunji versus Taemin and Naeun!”

After a very competitive round robin-style tournament, Key and Eunji ended up in last place. They both groaned in frustration while the rest cheered.

“Is it too late to pull the ‘This is my house!’ card?” asked Key.

“Yup! Rules are rules, bro.” Minho said, patting his friend on the shoulder.

“Okay, fine!” Eunji said, holding her hands up in defeat. “We lost! But we’re only buying you guys _one_ dessert each, okay? No hoarding!”

“Yay! Okay!” Chaeyoung said, clapping and bobbing up and down from the water. “What should we play next?”

“What about water volleyball?” Jonghyun suggested. “Key, you guys have a net that we can set up, right?”

“Sure, let me just go and get it.” Key said, climbing out of the pool.

“Great!” said Chaeyoung. “Boys against girls? Game?”

“Can I play this time?” asked Minho.

“But there’s five of you and four of us.” said Rosé.

Immediately, Onew raised his hand. “I volunteer to leave. Chicken fighting made me think of chicken and now I’m hungry.”

“Okay, let’s do this!” Minho cheered. “Yeah! I _finally_ get to join!”

Naeun waded over to Taemin and whispered. “Is he always like this? I’m kind of scared…”

“Oh believe me,” Taemin answered. “Being teammates with him is scarier.”

~*~

As the sun was setting, the house help began setting up blankets and lawn chairs around the stone campfire. They also placed plates of graham crackers, chocolate, and marshmallows on a plastic foldable table. One by one, the teenagers stepped out of the pool and dried off. The girls put on their cover ups and the boys wore their shirts. 

“Here…” Taemin said, wrapping a big warm towel around Naeun. “Put this on or you’ll be cold.”

He rested his arm around her shoulders as they walked over to the campfire. 

“What about you?” Naeun said. “Won’t you be cold?”

Taemin smiled cheekily. “Not if you cuddle with me.”

Naeun blushed and lightly smacked his arm. When they found their spot on one of the blankets, she wrapped the towel around the both of them and curled her arm around Taemin’s.

“Hey, how about a song from our showcase winner?” Jonghyun said, handing Rosé his guitar.

She obliged and positioned herself on one of the lawn chairs. “Any requests?”

“Something romantic!” said Chaeyoung, winking at the new couple.

Rosé tapped her chin while thinking of a song to play. 

“I’ve got it!” she said. “I know you all know this so you guys have to sing along, okay?”

She positioned her fingers on the fretboard and lightly strummed the strings.

_L is for the way you look at me  
O is for the only one I see_

Jonghyun started harmonizing with his soft and gentle voice.

_V is very, very extraordinary  
E is even more than anyone that you adore can_

Everybody swayed and started singing along with the two musicians.

_Love is all that I can give to you  
Love is more than just a game for two  
Two in love can make it  
Take my heart and please don't break it  
Love was made for me and you_

As the song drew to a close, they all applauded for themselves, including Rosé.

“So there’s only about a month and a half of school left,” said Chaeyoung. “Do you guys have any plans for the summer?”

“I’ll be giving kids soccer lessons at the community center.” said Minho. 

“Yeah?” Chaeyoung replied. “That sounds fun!”

“Yeah. I love soccer and I love kids. I want to be a soccer coach someday, like my dad.” 

“That’s so sweet.” Naeun said, smiling at her friend. She turned to Taemin and gently poked his side. “What about you? Any special plans?”

“I’m going to spoil my new girlfriend, of course.” he said, gently booping the tip of her nose. 

Naeun scrunched her nose and laughed. “I meant, what else?”

“What I do every year. Take dance lessons with Kai at Sugawara Studio.”

Taemin turned to face Onew, who was taking a big bite of his s’mores. 

“What about you, Mr. Student-Body-President-For-The-Third-Time-In-A-Row?”

“Bold of you to assume that I’m running again,” Onew answered with his mouth full.

Everybody whined and groaned.

“Why not?” Chaeyoung said. “I mean, you’re obviously good at it!”

“It’s just so much work,” Onew said, putting another marshmallow at the end of the wooden stick. 

“But you said you didn’t mind,” said Naeun. 

“Come on, bro!” Minho said. “We’ll be with you the whole way! I’ll even get you a life-sized cardboard cutout for election season!”

Onew sighed as he wiped chocolate from his mouth. “Fine, fine. I’ll think about it.”

“What about you, Key?” asked Eunji. “Got any fun plans?”

“I was actually just about to tell you guys,” he answered. “I’m going to Paris with my mom for about a month. She got me a spot at one of the top art schools’ summer programs.” 

“You’re an artist?” Eunji said interestedly. 

“Yeah,” Key answered proudly. “I guess I kind of am.”

“What do you specialize in?”

“Well, I dabble in a lot of things but I love painting the most.”

“Really? I’d love to see your work some time.”

“I actually have some paintings hung up here. Do you want to see?”

“Sure! And maybe you can give me that tour of the house too?”

Key smiled and nodded. After standing up and stretching, he offered Eunji a hand. They walked back to the house, leaving the others smiling teasingly at them. 

“So who wants to bet that they’ll be together by the end of the summer?” Jonghyun said, when they were out of earshot.

Rosé laughed and gently pushed her friend. “Jjong, stop!”

“What?” he said. “They’re clearly into each other! Does anyone disagree?”

All of them just exchanged knowing smiles and chuckles.

“See?” Jjong said. “I’m right!”

“Don’t pressure them!” Naeun said. “Whatever happens, happens.”

“Uh, yeah, okay. As if you guys would be together without _our_ help.” said Jonghyun, gesturing to everyone.

Naeun huffed and looked at her boyfriend for back-up. Taemin scratched the back of his head and sighed.

“Well.. he’s not wrong…” Taemin said. “I mean, they really did help _a lot_ , babe.”

Naeun caught Jonghyun playfully sticking his tongue out at her and did the same. 

“Real mature, guys.” Onew teased. 

“Coming from the guy who has chocolate all over his face?” Minho pointed and laughed at the older boy. “You look like a six-year old who was left alone with three whole chocolate bars.”

Chaeyoung snapped a quick photo and showed Onew. When he saw his messy self, he started laughing along with the others as well, before grabbing a pack of tissues to clean himself up. As they calmed down, Rosé laid the guitar beside her and rubbed her arms. 

“It’s getting a bit cold…” she said. “I think we should head inside.”

“What about one last song before we go?” Jonghyun said, reaching for the guitar and putting it on his lap. “I was going to record this before letting you guys hear it, but what the heck…”

The boy started plucking the guitar strings, creating a slow and mellow ballad. 

_Hold out your hand, wrap it around my neck  
A little below, massage my shoulders  
At the end of a tiring day, even if the sun has already come up  
I'm finally closing my eyes_

No one spoke a word as Jonghyun’s soothing voice filled the air. His serenade was so sincere and heartfelt. He had them holding onto each note he sang until the very last. 

_You did a good job today, you worked so hard  
You are my prize_

“That was really nice, Jonghyun” Rosé said, patting her friend on the back. “Who inspired you to write that?”

“...My dog.”

~*~

After packing up, they carried the lawnchairs and the blankets inside. Taemin wrapped his arm around Naeun’s shoulders and gave her a kiss on the forehead. 

“Did you have fun today?” he whispered in her ear.

“I did. Thank you.” she answered, smiling up at him. 

“Good… Because I’m going to make sure you’re going to be this happy everyday.”

“Are you sure? That’s a lot of work.” she joked.

“You’re just going to have to trust me.” 

“Really now? What, may I ask, do you have planned for tomorrow?”

“Well for starters, can I walk you home?”

Naeun giggled and surprised Taemin with a quick peck on the lips. She held his hand and gazed lovingly at the boy.

“I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone!
> 
> I hope you enjoyed this epilogue! While writing it, my goal was to provide closure for this story but also leave hope for possible spin-offs. Who knows? I might write other fics for the other characters too. ;)
> 
> Like I said before, there will be a Q&A/Easter Egg chapter next week! I'm opening the floor to questions, suggestions, comments, reactions, etc. about the fanfic or about my writing. Then, I'll respond to them during in the Q&A chapter. You can comment here or even PM me. Don't worry. I'll keep your names/usernames anonymous. Please do remember to be respectful if you decide to submit an inquiry, etc. :) 
> 
> So that about wraps it up for Soldier. I know I say this all the time but I want to thank you all for your love and support! This was the first long fanfic I've written in YEARS. I know it isn't perfect but I really enjoyed writing this. Seeing your positive feedback really motivated me to keep writing and improving. I love you guys, especially the ones who have made it this far. <3
> 
> I hope to see you again soon! Once again, thank you and I love you all! <3


	23. Q&A + Easter Eggs

Hi everyone! 

Welcome to the bonus chapter of Soldier! As you may have guessed by the title, this will be a Q&A and Easter Egg chapter. The Q&A is self-explanatory. I will just answer the questions/comments/etc. that my readers have submitted to me. As for the Easter Egg part, I will point out the trivia, inside jokes, etc. that I included in each chapter. I will also provide author’s notes. With that said, let’s get started!

~*~*~*~

**QUESTION & ANSWER**

**1\. How did you get the idea for the story?**  


\- My inspiration for this story is a combination of Taemin and Naeun’s We Got Married and Taemin’s song, Soldier. If I had to pinpoint an exact moment, it would be the part where they were walking around Myeongdong and there was a huge crowd following them with people cursing at Naeun. Taemin’s commentary at that part was something like he hoped Naeun didn’t hear those people because he didn’t want her to feel bad. He wanted to protect her. Then the story started to develop around that core idea.

    

    

**2\. I like writing. But just poetry or my thoughts and feelings in the form of creative, decorative writing. There was a time when I tried to write a story but never succeeded, because I'm not sure how. So how do you go about it? When you started writing, did you already have a whole story planned or did it come to you as you wrote?  
**

\- It’s a little bit of both, actually. I have an outline of what I want to happen. It’s like I already have the main events planned beforehand but not the exact details. So like, I have Event A and Event B but I need to write what’s in between to connect those two points in the plot. I think a good example would be in Chapter 13, where Taemin saw Naeun bonding with his friends. That was Event A. Event B was Taemin getting into a fight with his friends. So I have those two planned out beforehand, but I had to figure out a way to fill in the blanks in between. Why was Naeun alone with the four guys? How did Taemin see them? So there. I hope I explained it properly. XD

    

    
    

    

**3\. I once read that some people start writing stories, books from the end.. They have to know what the ending will be and then build around it. I think my problem was that I got an idea for the story but could never think of situations and more details that would actually make it a story and not just a segment of thoughts.  
**

\- Yes, some people do that. I think I kind of did that as well? Like I mentioned in the previous question, I have an outline of major events (starting from beginning to end) and wrote what was in between as I go along. I’m not sure if this is your style but maybe you can try doing the outline first before pursuing the whole story. Write down your ideas, even if they come to you sporadically. Most importantly, don’t force it. Let the ideas come to you. Let yourself be freely inspired. There’s no “deadline” anyway so at least time isn’t an issue. :)

    

    
    

    

**4\. Which chapter/scene you enjoyed writing the most? Do you have favourites? Explain.  
**

\- Hmm… That’s a good question. I think I have a few. Let me enumerate. :D  


    \- Definitely Chapter 13. This was probably one of the hardest chapters but also one of the most fun to write. It’s one of the most fun for me because I could actually picture everything going on in my head. This may be a little sadistic but I enjoyed writing about Taemin’s frustration and how he kept misunderstanding the situations. XD  


    \- Definitely Chapter 14 as well. Again, this is quite sadistic but I really enjoyed writing all that drama. XD  


    
    \- I loved Chapter 20 too! It was enjoyable for me because it was like the whole plan was coming together, like the stars were aligning to make this happen. I think I have two favorite parts in this chapter. The first one being Minho accidentally spilling the beans about Taemin performing. The second one is the part where Taemin was singing and Naeun made her way to the front to get his attention, then it ended with Taemin finishing the song holding Naeun’s hand. I don’t know about you guys but that scene was so romantic for me. <3  

    \- CHAPTER 21!!! Yes, I loved this too! Well, for one thing, I love happy endings. It was so fun to actually write down my thoughts and plot that was already in my mind. Plus, I love the drama/cheesiness between Taemin and Naeun. <3  

    \- I loved writing the Epilogue too. It’s probably because I knew that it was going to be a very easy-going chapter. Finally, all the characters were just going to let loose and have fun. :)

    
    

    
    

    

**5\. Do you have any favourite quotes and how did you come up with them? Meaning, did it come naturally or you were inspired by something?  
** \- Again, I have quite a few. I’ll enumerate again. XD But yes, sometimes they came naturally. The thing is, whenever I would write, I would try to put myself in the character’s shoes. What would I say in that situation? Or what would I want that person to say to me? However, I sometimes also wrote based on my experiences (things I’ve said in the past, things I’ve heard, etc.) Anyway, here are some of my favorites.  


    _\- “Don’t say that she deserves a better guy. Say that she deserves a better you.”_ (Chapter 11)  

     _\- “W-Well, you can’t exactly break something you never had…”_ (Chapter 12)  
\-->This was based on my own experience. ):  

  
     _\- “Because the students need a voice. They need someone to be there for them. When I won, I knew that it wasn’t just about me anymore. It wasn’t about what I wanted. It was about them, and that’s what I always think about whenever I do my work.”_ (Chapter 13)  
\--> This was based on my own experience as well. I was part of the student council during college and this became my mindset when I was elected. Being in a position of power like that doesn’t mean that you can do whatever you want. Once you earn that position, it’s not about you anymore. It’s about the people who chose you to lead them.  

  
     _\- “Yes!” Key shouted. “Yes, you are! Who was the one who dumped her? You! Who decided to go back to being a playboy jerk right after? You! And now, who’s trying to blame his friends for his mistakes? Guess what? Still you!”_ (Chapter 14)  


    _\- “You can’t just keep breaking things and tossing them aside and expect us to pick up the pieces, just like you did with Naeun!”_ (Chapter 14)  


    _\- “You… changed everything. You changed me. You were the first girl who actually made me feel like I was genuinely loved - like I was finally enough.”_ (Chapter 18)  
\-->Yeah, I know this was super cheesy. As much as I love writing drama, I also enjoy writing cheesy lines and situations like that.  


    _\- “Yes, but a handsome workaholic. Don’t fall in love with me now.”_ (Chapter 20)  
\--> I know, I know. It’s so obvious that I’m an MVP. Onew, it’s too late baby. I’m already so in love with you. <3  


    _\- “If you’ll have me, I will fight for you every single day for the rest of my life… I’ll protect you. I’ll make you smile. I’ll make sure that you know how much I love you everyday.” (Chapter 21)_  
\--> I was smiling so so hard when I wrote this. I mean, hello? Just imagine someone you’re in love with confessing to you like this? I’d prolly cry happy tears just like Naeun did. XD  


    _\- “Well for starters, can I walk you home?” “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”_ (Epilogue)  
\--> I love this line because that’s how Taemin and Naeun started. Their relationship developed when they would have dates and walking each other home after. It just gives a feeling that we’ve gone full circle in this story.  


    

    
    
__

~*~*~*~

    

****

**EASTER EGGS**

    

    

_*If I skipped a chapter, that means there are no trivia/easter eggs/author’s notes for that chapter._

    

    

**Chapter 1**

    

\- **Trivia:** Taemin used to eat ants when he was younger.  
\- **Author’s Note:** I think it was actually the first time writing through a child’s perspective. I think that all the past fanfics I’ve written didn’t involve writing about characters this young.

    

    

**Chapter 2**

    

\- **Author’s Note:** Haemi and Minsoo aren’t actually their moms’ names. I think Taemin mentioned his mom’s name during WGM but I decided to use different names to protect their privacy.  
\- **Author’s Note** : So they were talking about that whole destiny thing, right? I thought I could do something with that in future chapters but I didn’t really get a chance to insert that somewhere. So yeah, I apologize if it seemed out of place.

    

    

**Chapter 3**

    

\- _“As he waited for the machine to completely start up, he couldn’t stop playing with his fingers - a habit he did when he was fidgeting.”_  
\--> **Trivia** : Taemin really used to do this especially during SHINee’s early years. He also used to blink a lot out of nervousness too.  
\- **Author’s Note** : I know it’s probably so unrealistic that the five of them, each with very different personalities, became such close friends. I loosely based their personalities on what we know about them, both pre-debut and after. Onew really did well when he was in school. He was actually ranked at #2. Jonghyun was in a band in middle school. He also knows how to play the guitar, bass, and piano. As for Key, I’m not sure if he had an affinity for fashion in his early years but we all know that he did later on. He became a fashion director at SM Entertainment and is currently still a fashion icon. Of course, Minho would be the jock. I think that he always leaned towards sports considering that his dad was a soccer coach. Though, he’s proven time and time again that he’s good at other sports too. As for Taemin, I had to tweak his personality a bit to match what I intended for his character in this story. I kept the dancing part though. Let me just repeat the disclaimer that their personalities in this story do not necessarily reflect how they are in real life.  
\- **Trivia** : Eunsook was actually Onew’s female name in the skit where they all had to dress up as girls. You can search “Shinee girls in a mini drama” on Youtube. Surprisingly, they all look pretty good as girls XD 

    

    

**Chapter 4**

    

_\- “Her casual floral dress billowed around her as she spinned. With it, she matched a pink cardigan and pink ballet flats.”_  
\--> **Trivia** : This outfit was based on what Naeun was wearing when she first met Taemin in We Got Married. It wasn’t exactly the same but it had a similar vibe.  
\- **Trivia** : The principal of the school is Kang Hodong. He’s a very popular MC and comedian in the Korean showbiz industry. You may know him from the show, Knowing Brothers. He was also previously a famous wrestler.  
\- **Author’s Note** : I chose Hodong as the principal because I wanted someone with a friendly aura but at the same time, had the slightly cool ahjussi personality. I get that vibe from him every time I watch Knowing Brothers so there. Also, I added a bit of his wrestling background so that he would have more depth, even if he was just a side character.  
\- **Inside Joke** : Jonghyun looks like a dinosaur. XD  
\- **Inside Joke** : Well, I’m not sure if this is a joke but people have observed that Minho’s face is quite small.

    

    

**Chapter 5**

    

\- **Author’s Note** : I had a lot of architectural/interior design descriptions in this chapter because I’m actually taking up architecture right now in college. I hope I was able to describe the school well enough so that you guys can picture it better. :)  
\- **Author’s Note** : The arts and crafts room is actually my favorite. I’m a cosplayer so that involves sewing my costumes and making my props. It would be heaven for me to find a place like this where I can do everything I need/want to do. :)  
\- **Trivia** : We know that Key does have an affinity for fashion in real life, but he’s also skilled in visual arts. He has had some of his works shown in art galleries. He was also the one who designed the cover art of SHINee’s Misconceptions of Us.  
\- _“Are you an artistic person?”_  
\--> **Trivia** : Yes, in fact Naeun is an artistic person. She can draw well. In WGM, she even made a drawing of what she imagined she and her husband would look like. You can also look up her works online. She’s very talented.  
\- **Author’s Note** : Okay, so I pictured that “special spot” in the library to be like a pearl aqua heaven. It would have a pearl aqua-colored shag rug, bean bags in different shades of colors close to pearl aqua, and those lamps shaped like a moon that light up when you touch them.  
\- **Trivia** : Naeun’s locker number is 718, which is Taemin’s birthday (July 18).

    

    

**Chapter 6**

    

\- **Trivia** : The girl with the locker beside Naeun’s is Son Chaeyoung from TWICE. Imagine her with chin-length bob during the Feel Special era. The blonde girl is Rosé (whose name is also Chaeyoung) from BLACKPINK. Imagine her look during the Kill This Love era or their performance at Coachella.  
\- **Author’s Note** : Before I wrote this chapter, I had to figure out who to include in Naeun’s circle of friends. I’m not sure how it works in other schools but in this AU, the students’ lockers are arranged alphabetically. Therefore, since Naeun’s last name is Son, I needed to look for someone with a same/similar name. I started checking out names of members in K-Pop groups. Lo and behold, I found Son Chaeyoung from TWICE. While reading trivia about her, I found out that she was close with Rosé from BLACKPINK. So yeah, it was basically handed to me on a silver platter. :D  
\- _“Oh, I’m friends with Jjong! We’re in the Music Club together!” said Rosé.”_  
\--> **Author’s Note** : I’m not sure if there was actually a connection between Rosé and Jonghyun. I just decided to put them together because I think both of them would work well in that scenario. Imagine them with their guitars or keyboards and singing acoustic versions of songs. Of course I’m not saying that other idols can’t do that. I’m just more familiar with SHINee and BLACKPINK.  
\- **Trivia** : Ms. Song is the actress, Song Hyekyo. She played Kang Moyeon (the lead female character) in Descendants of the Sun (which Onew also starred in). Imagine her with her brown hair and thin bangs with smart casual/dressy casual attire in that series.  
\- **Author’s Note** : Yes, I purposely chose The Little Prince because of Jonghyun. I feel like that book has a different meaning now (at least to me). I feel like it’s more special, especially because SHINee alluded to it in their Good Evening music video.

    

    

**Chapter 7**

    

\- **Trivia** : Cheongdam High School is a real high school. It was where Taemin and Naeun actually studied. (I misspelled it. It was supposed to be Chungdam.)  
\- **Author’s Note** : I chose Stardust by Neil Gaiman because I also kind of panicked. XD My favorite books aren’t really well-known so I thought of other books I liked that were relatively popular.  
\- _“Umm, I have History in Room 214..?”_  
\--> **Trivia** : 214 = February 14 = Valentine’s Day  
\- **Author’s Note** : I chose Minho to be Naeun’s first male friend (besides Taemin) because of his reputation as a gentle, sweet, and just a generally sociable person.  
\- **Author’s Note** : So after making my decision about Chaeyoung and Rosé, I felt like Naeun needed another friend. I decided to add someone from APink and I chose Eunji because she was the one who appeared in Taemin and Naeun’s WGM.  
\--> *She also appeared in Key’s WGM. :>  
\- **Trivia** : Key hates carrots.  
\- _“Remember that time you made me eat that whole clove of garlic?”_  
\--> **Trivia** : There really was a time when the members made him eat garlic on a variety show. They brushed his teeth with a clove of garlic before force-feeding it to him. Poor baby XD  
\- _“Diroriii!”_  
\--> **Trivia** : This was the catchphrase of Key’s character in the drama, Drinking Solo.  


****

****

    

    

**Chapter 9**

    

\- **Author’s Note** : I actually counted the questions and color-coded them before posting this to make sure they had ten each.  
\- _“Ahhh… I like bad boys.”_  
\--> **Trivia** : During WGM, Taemin asked Naeun if she liked bad boys. At first, she joked when she said yes, but then later on said that they weren’t for her.  
\- _“I guess I like the type of guy who’s honest and manly…”_  
\--> **Trivia** : This is actually what it says on her profile on Kprofiles.

    

    

**Chapter 10**

    

\- **Trivia** : Taemin and Naeun are both Catholic in real life. Taemin’s English name is Francesco while Naeun’s is Marcella.  
\- _“Within minutes, she was already singing and dancing to NoNoNo by Apink.”_  
\--> **Trivia** : NoNoNo is a song by Apink. In WGM, it was the song that Apink performed wherein Naeun wore the rosary bracelet that Taemin gave her.  
\- _“Noona neomu yeppeo… Micheo… Replay, replay, replay…”_  
\--> **Trivia** : These are lines from the chorus of SHINee’s debut song, Replay.  
\- _“Don’t worry,” Taemin said. “Marcy neomu yeppeo.”_  
\--> **Author’s Note** : This was a modified version of an iconic line from Replay. It roughly translates into, “Marcy, you’re so pretty.”  
\- **Trivia** : In WGM, Taemin did give Naeun a wooden rosary bracelet. He couldn’t give it to her himself since SHINee was in Japan at that time. What he did was ask for help from EXO and planned a whole event so he can give the gift. After that event, it was when Apink performed NoNoNo while Naeun was wearing the bracelet. While in Japan, Taemin was trying to watch Apink live and it was a whole mess of trying out different phones just to get a good wifi signal. When he finally saw Naeun wearing the bracelet, he, Minho, and Jonghyun started jumping around and cheering. (Seriously, an iconic moment XD )  
\- _“He was waiting for her in a plaid button-down with a white shirt inside and ripped jeans.”_  
\- **Author’s Note** : I pictured Taemin wearing his outfit from one of his comeback shows. You can search “Press Your Number Music Bank COMEBACK / 2016.02.26” on Youtube. I chose this outfit because it’s seriously one of my favorites and he looked so good in that performance and there was a part where he ran his hand through his blonde hair and just ugh <3

    

    

**Chapter 11**

    

\- **Trivia** : Jongmi is the name of Jonghyun when he played a girl on SHINee’s episode of Knowing Brothers.  
\- **Author’s Note** : Of course I had to put Kai in there somewhere, considering he’s a fellow main dancer (EXO) and one of Taemin’s real life best friends.  
\- **Trivia** : Just like Eunsook was Onew’s female name in that SHINee girls skit, Gwiboon is Key’s female counterpart. Gwiboon is pretty! <3  
\- **Author’s Note** : When I wrote about Key’s house, I pictured the Park family’s house in Parasite. (Awesome movie. Totally deserved the Oscar. Please watch it when you can. :) ) However, I visualized Key’s as a bit higher, with a big roof deck or balcony.  
\- **Author’s Note** : Of course, Comme Des and Garcons are in the story! We can’t have Key without his babies. :)

    

    

**Chapter 12**

    

\- **Author’s Note** : For some reason, I felt the need to make them drink bubble tea. It’s become a thing here for some reason and I think at the time I was writing Chapter 12, I was craving it. Then I had to look up what snacks go best with bubble tea and that’s how it ended up with them eating spicy popcorn chicken. :)  
\- **Author’s Note** : When I was choosing what movie they were going to watch, I panicked (again). XD Originally, I wanted them to watch Parasite but I feel like it’s a little bit too heavy for this fanfic. I also thought about Train to Busan, but I hadn’t watched it yet at the time. The thing is, when I would write, sometimes I would play movies in the background (because I don’t like working when it’s too quiet). At that time, my go-to movie was Frozen 2 so I just went with it. Since it was a musical, I thought about the songs too and that’s how I came up with Rosé being the embarrassing friend. (She would have nailed that high note in real life tho ;) ) So yeah, I totally recommend all three of these movies! Watch them when you can. :D  
\- **Trivia** : The song that Naeun was listening to is Congratulations by Day6. They’re a band under JYP and this was their debut song. This song has both Korean and English versions. For this fanfic, I used the lyrics of the English version. I recommend listening to Day6 too. They’re awesome! :D

    

    

**Chapter 13**

    

\- _“You want me to act? Yeah, I don’t think I can do that..”_  
\--> **Author’s Note** : Of course you can, Ming. ;)  
\- _“Naeun, I’ve seen your ‘doodles’ in class. They’re better than you think…”_  
\--> **Author’s Note** : Again, this is an allusion to Naeun’s artistic side.  
\- _“Actually…” Key said as he examined Naeun’s draft. “It isn’t that bad.”_  
\--> **Inside Joke** : Key said “It isn’t that bad” during his WGM and it became a sort of inside joke among Shawols (kind of like “Dirori!”).  
\- _“I’m not exactly some wise old hen…”_  
\--> **Author’s Note** : This is an allusion to when Key talked about “living like a chicken.” I know it sounds weird but it’s a very inspiring speech. You can search "A Chicken Who Can't Live As A Chicken is So Tragic" on Youtube. I highly recommend watching this. :)  
\- **Trivia** : The song that Rosé sang was Stay by BLACKPINK.  
\--> **Author’s Note** : Whenever I choose songs to include in the story, I always make sure they’re somehow connected to whatever’s happening in that moment. In the lyrics I put, it talks about how someone makes you feel sad and hurt, but you want them to stay with you anyway. This resembles how Naeun felt about Taemin at that time.  
\- **Trivia:** The song that Jonghyun showed Naeun was Beautiful Tonight.  
\--> **Author’s Note** : Yes, I know this isn’t really connected to what’s happening but I had a different way of choosing songs for Jonghyun. At this point, I already had the showcase in mind so I was thinking of something that I’ve already seen him perform live. I’ve always had a soft spot for Beautiful Tonight, especially when he uses the kazoo, because it’s such a nice song for just chilling out. I purposely included the kazoo even though it’s not in the studio version because I think it adds a unique element that makes the song even better (in my opinion).  
\- **Author’s Note** : Honestly, this chapter was SO FUN to write but it made me very nervous. When I was still conceptualizing and laying out my notes to flesh out my idea for the fanfic, this part was already very clear to me. I was like, “Okay, I definitely need to make this part happen.” That’s part of why I introduced the different parts of the school and aligned them with the different personalities of the boys. However, I was very nervous as well because it all made sense to me, but I had to make sure that you guys (my readers) understood it the same way. That’s why I was super happy and relieved when I received good reviews about this chapter. I’m glad that I was able to convey the plot properly and that you guys understood and enjoyed it. :)

********

********

    

    

**Chapter 14**

    

\- **Author’s Note** : Immediately, my inspiration for the fight between the boys was the Tell Me What To Do music video. I’m sure you can tell, especially because of the part where Taemin pushed Ming and Key tried to stop things from getting physical.  
\- **Author’s Note** : Yup, Music Club is on Wednesdays. Just like I mentioned in Chapter 8. I always try to be consistent especially with schedules. In my notes, I actually planned it week by week. If possible, I also planned it day by day (like the previous chapter). Yes, I’m meticulous like that. XD  
\- _“Yes!” Key shouted. “Yes, you are! Who was the one who dumped her? You! Who decided to go back to being a playboy jerk right after? You! And now, who’s trying to blame his friends for his mistakes? Guess what? Still you!”_  
\--> **Author’s Note** : Probably one of my favorite lines from the fanfic.  
\- _“Don’t think we didn’t see her when you dumped her... She was so hurt, Taemin. So don’t act like you’re the victim here. You broke her. Don’t blame us for trying to help her put the pieces back together.”_  
\--> **Author’s Note** : Another favorite line from the fanfic. I love drama. XD  
\- _“By the way, your friends were actually encouraging me to give you a second chance. I don’t think I’ll be taking their advice.”_  
\--> **Author’s Note** : Mmhm, this was ice cold. That’s what you get for being an idiot, boi.

    

    

**Chapter 15**

    

\- **Author’s Note** : At this point in the story, I was a bit lost. I didn’t really know where to go from the previous chapter so I tried putting myself in Taemin’s shoes. If you don’t have your friends, or your S.O., I guess you’re left with your family. In this case, Taemin had his mom. However, I still had reservations because I thought that this would seem like a filler chapter. Again, I was relieved when you guys said y’all liked it. I was happy to hear that you said that it was a good break from the drama and a nice way to show another side of Taemin. I guess what I was also thinking while writing this was that you have to make the audience root for the main character. You have to write your protagonist well. You have to give them depth and character. You have to give them a reason why they deserve a happy ending.  
\- **Trivia** : Taemin and his mom were watching Descendants of the Sun. The character that Taemin was making fun of was Lee Chihoon, which was played by Onew in the actual series. He pointed out the fact that Chihoon wasn’t doing CPR right despite being a doctor. This was actually one of the criticisms that Onew received after starring in that show. One of the reasons that he stated for not doing CPR properly was that he was told that it would be a close-up shot. He then thought that if he just moved his shoulders, it would look fine. Second, he was being careful because that was an actual person and not a dummy. Onew is really physically strong so most likely, he was just trying not to hurt the person.  
\- **Inside Joke** : Both in Hello Baby and SHINee’s Back, Taemin kept adding unnecessary items to their grocery basket because he wanted snacks.  
\- **Inside Joke** : The chocolate cereal was an allusion to SHINee’s Back AND his Taemlog 6v6.  
\- **Inside Joke** : Noodle Snacks = BUSYEO! BUSYEO!  
\- **Inside Joke** : Organic cheese for babies = Baby Cheese

    

    

**Chapter 16**

    

\- _“That is so fetch.”_  
\--> **Author’s Note** : This is a famous line from Mean Girls.  
**Author’s Note** : Okay, I made a boo-boo here. Rosé was with the girls but she was supposed to be attending Music Club because it’s a Wednesday. My bad.  
**Author’s Note** : Yes, Taemin’s dance practices are on Fridays. I forgot to mention that back in my notes for Chapter 10.

    

    

**Chapter 17**

    

\- _“Onew, Jonghyun, Key, and Minho pushed Taemin to the ground. With each of them grabbing one limb, they threw him into the swimming pool.”_  
\--> **Author’s Note** : They basically Everybody’d him into the pool. XD  
\- _“Yeah, but did you die?”_  
\--> **Author’s Note** : This is from the popular meme, “But did you die?” from The Hangover 2.  
\- _“One more thing before we start… Jjong? Bet you never thought you could reach that high, huh?”_  
\--> **Inside Joke** : Jonghyun being the shortest among the five members. XD  
\- _“I’m pretty sure it wasn’t that bad,”_  
\--> **Inside Joke** : ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)  
\- _“Then tell her! If you love her, tell her without holding back!”_  
\--> **Trivia** : This line is part of the lyrics of If You Love Her by SHINee.  
\- _“Is this the reality you want?”_  
\--> **Inside Joke** : Jonghyun used to say this line all the time during Hello Baby.

    

    

**Chapter 18**

    

\- _“Even if you did need to borrow Key’s tracksuit and wear a scarf in this weather.”_  
\--> **Author’s Note** : Imagine Minho wearing Key’s green tracksuit from Drinking Solo. XD

    

    

**Chapter 19**

    

\- _“Naeun held up a short sleeveless dark blue dress with a small flower print.”_  
\--> **Author’s Note** : I imagined this outfit to be kind of like the one Naeun wore on WGM. It was when she and Taemin went to a cafe and she played a song for him on the guitar for his birthday. Her dress on show had white polka dots so just imagine a floral print instead.  
\- _“Guys,” said Rosé, dressed in a cream colored dress with small boho patterns along the hem and the sleeves.”  
_ \--> **Author’s Note** : I couldn’t find an exact dress like this but the closest I can use as a reference is what Rosé wore while performing Let It Be + You & I + Only Look At Me during BLACKPINK’s 2018 Tour in Seoul. You can search this on Youtube. Seriously, it’s a beautiful dress and it really suits her.

    

    

**Chapter 20**

    

\- **Author’s Note** : Regarding Onew’s look, it’s very similar to one of the outfits he had when he was in Eat Sleep Eat with Chaeyeon from DIA. It was what he wore when they visited Universal Studios in Singapore and Onew danced in front of a crowd, except I imagined his hair to be styled up. You can search “161227 ONEW dancing KING” on Youtube and see for yourself. :D  
\- **Author’s Note** : I know I described Rosé’s and Naeun’s outfits but I didn’t with the other two. First of all, I felt the NEED to describe the first two because there will be upcoming scenes where the readers need to actually visualize them. As for the other two, I chose not to describe them because it would be straying from the plot a bit, I think. However, I did have something in mind for Chaeyoung. It was her outfit from TWICE’s More and More video - the cream-colored dress with her hair in twin buns on her head. It’s a super cute look. Anyway, the whole fashion aesthetic of the girls is basically Coachella/hippie-chic. So yeah, I hope you can picture it properly.  
\- **Trivia** : The MCs for the show are Heechul (Super Junior) and Hodong (their principal in this fanfic). I based their looks on what they wore during that episode in Knowing Brothers where SHINee was their guest.  
\- **Author’s Note** : I just want to say something else about how I choose songs to include in the fanfic. Like I said earlier, my first criteria is that it should be relevant to the plot. Second, I choose songs that were actually sung by the character so that you can easily picture them performing it. In this chapter, we see Rosé, Jae (Day6), Jonghyun, and Taemin sing songs that they’ve actually performed in real life.  
\- **Trivia** : Jae is Park Jaehyung who is the Lead Guitarist and Main Vocalist of Day6. Better Man was a song he wrote way back in 2012 (before he debuted with Day6). You can search “Better Man - Jae Park” on Youtube. I love this song and I hope you can check it out some time.  
\- _“He was before he formed a band with his friends. He’s a junior. His name is Park Jaehyung, but he goes by Jae.”_  
\--> **Author’s Note** : This is an allusion to Day6.  
\- _“Naeun noticed Key and Eunji widen their smiles and let their handshake linger a bit longer than the other two._  
\--> **Author’s Note** : Key x Eunji ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)  
\- _“H-Hey look!” Onew pointed at Jonghyun on stage, attempting to distract Naeun. “Jonghyun’s using his kazoo!”  
_ \--> **Inside Joke** : Jonghyun using his kazoo! To be honest, I still think the studio version would have sounded better if he included his kazoo in it.  
\- **Author’s Note** : Well, since the title of the fanfic is “Soldier,” Taemin was bound to sing it sooner or later. XD Jokes aside, this song actually played a big part in how I came up with the plot. I worked around the lyrics and that’s how I came up with the skeleton of the story.

    

    

**Chapter 21**

    

\- **Trivia** : Ryujin is the Main Rapper and Center of Itzy. She can dance really well too. If you want proof, check out their song, Wannabe. :D \- **Author’s Note** : I cannot stress this enough. That kissing scene was SO HARD to write. Hopefully, I’ll get more practice next time and improve. :)  
\- _“Yeah, don’t worry, Naeun. Your friend, Eunji, is taking care of him.”_  
\--> **Author’s Note** : ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)  
\- **Inside Joke** : Minho’s always dabbing. XD

****

****

    

    

**Epilogue**

    

\- _“Okay, so can we eat now?” said Onew. “I don’t have a lot of self-control when it comes to food.”  
_ \--> **Inside Joke** : Cuz Onew is a hungry boi  
\- “Chicken fighting made me think of chicken and now I’m hungry.”  
\--> **Trivia** : Onew’s favorite food is chicken, particularly fried chicken.  
\- **Author’s Note** : The song that Rosé sang was L-O-V-E (originally by Nat King Cole). I got this idea because for the past few weeks, I’ve been obsessed with Rosé and Lisa’s (BLACKPINK) cover of this song. You can search “Rosé love cover” on Youtube and watch it. It’s a super cute performance. <3  
\- _“Yeah. I love soccer and I love kids. I want to be a soccer coach someday, like my dad.”_  
\--> **Author’s Note** : Yup, that’s Minho. His dad really is a soccer coach in real life.  
\- " _“What I do every year. Take dance lessons with Kai at Sugawara Studio.”_  
\--> **Trivia** : I named the place after the choreographer, Koharu Sugawara. She was the one who choreographed Taemin’s Sayonara Hitori, Flame of Love, and Move, and also SHINee’s Good Evening.  
\- **Author’s Note** : Key and Eunji again… ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)  
\- **Trivia** : The song that Jonghyun sang was End of a Day.  
\--> **Author’s Note** : When I was writing this chapter, I think it was recently after the orchestra version of the song was released. So when I was thinking of a nice song to conclude the story, End of a Day was the first candidate.  
\--> **Additional Trivia** : Jonghyun’s dog, Roo, really was the inspiration for this song. :)

    

~*~*~*~

    

**AFTERWORD**

    

    

I hope you enjoyed this extra chapter for Soldier! First of all, I hope I was able to answer your questions properly and maybe (just maybe) inspire you to write fanfics of your own. Second, I hope you were able to catch all the Easter eggs! Please tell me too if I missed something in the discussion above. There were so many so I might have forgotten a couple of them. XD 

    

I really enjoyed writing this fanfic. I already have a couple of ideas for spin-offs, but I’m not sure if I’ll be writing those anytime soon. If I do, I hope you guys will continue supporting me just like you did with this fanfic. :)

    

Well, I guess there’s not much to say anymore. I know I’ve said this multiple times already but I’ll say it again. I want to thank you for all your love and support for this fanfic! I know it wasn’t perfect and there’s a lot that I need to improve on so thank you for providing constructive criticism. I also want to thank those who have been with me from the beginning to the end. You don’t know how much that means to me. I love you all! <3

    

I don’t want to say goodbye because I know this isn’t the end. Instead, I’ll see you soon! :D

    


End file.
